Scarlet Blood
by Huli Ikura
Summary: -Work in Progress- Story about a Pokemorph who has been tricked by a demon into stealing her life away. Now in Limbo, she attempts to find a way out, and to escape the evil forces that threaten her to surrender her soul to Satan.
1. Chapter 1

"Mother... Why did you have to die...?"

A young female fox-like creature said to herself as she watched the body cart wheel away the deceased body of her spirited-away mother. The sounds of the sirens, the blaring of the horns on the ambulence, the voices, lights, and individuals rushing by as they went to see what had happened... All passed by her, as though nothing had happened to her at all... Only the white-covering sheet that contained the outline of her mother was the only thing that would make focus into her eyes... Stained with blood—her mother had not gone away with a peaceful death...

"Miss, I'm afraid you're going to have to leave now... They're busy cleaning up the site, and an officer will escort you home."

_...Just the way she had always planned it..._

"Miss...?"

_A peaceful way to die... by a river, in the sand..._

"Miss? Could you please look at me for a moment...?"

"Mother..." She whispered.

A man tapped her on the shoulder. It was the inspector, an Arcanine of about 30. She clutched her notebook in her arms, holding her mouth with one hand as the shock still spread itself through her mind.

The man gave up, moving to walk in front of her. He had to slightly bow his head down at the youthful fifteen year old girl in order to make eye contact with her.

"...Miss, they're taking your mother to the E.R. room, back at the Tyscan National Hospital right now. Tonight, they're going to run a few tests at the hospital and perform a biopsy to determine the possible cause and injuries concerning your mother's death. I suggest you go with the officer and meet up with your father back at home..."

"If only I knew how to say goodbye..." The young girl said quietly to herself.

"Miss..."

A man then stepped forward. A male Flareon, perhaps somewhere in his late thirties or so, appeared on to the scene, pressing his way forward passed the cautionary tape to where the young Eevee, as the creatures were called, stood. He panted for a bit, having just run to his destination, before placing a paw on her shoulder. She turned to look at him, to which he immediately held her close to his chest—breathing deep her hair for her scent and wrapping his arms around her. It was clearly obvious that this was her father...

"Oh, Eve... Oh, my dear daughter, Eve...!"

"Mother..." She cried silently with her father...

Chapter One

_A week later…_

The silent town of Tyscan rested quietly as the beginning of a new day had arrived on the early autumnal dawn. Low clouds of fog hovered slightly above the city heights, adding a misty feel to the seemingly otherwise gentle and warm feeling town. The golden hue of the sun could be seen peaking over the surface of the river that coursed its way through the town's middle, sparkling like a brilliant crown of the precious metal gold. The air felt mixed, as towns and small cities usually do, filled with the noises of cars, machines, and pedestrianic activity, while the rays of the sun ran a bipolar with the cool blue shadows cast by buildings and other landmark features.

It was not too far away from the town, in a suburb, that her house sat. One of a smaller size, she, along with hundreds and thousands of others, had gotten used to life in such tight quarters. It was a part of their daily life. It was also more convenient, as jobs were of a lesser distance to travel to, businesses to visit, or other important facilities that were within distance. Her house was of a tannish-white in color. Not being much to look at, it would appear a bit ugly in terms of its hue, but its interior had the nice homely feel of a well-to-do family that cared very much for each of its members. …Or, at least that was the way it used to feel… Now that her mother had passed away, life seemed to have taken a much more drastic toll. Dishes were kept clean, but the air of cleanliness still seemed to have run a bit stale. Laundry which would have its soft touch due to dedication of hard work around the house seemed to lack that special smell used in its concoction. Even meals around the house—what little that were prepared, seemed lifeless and without gusto… Life around the house would never be the same, now that she was gone…

In her bed, she lay—not wanting to move, not wanting to rise, for reasons other than it was a weekend… She stared lifelessly at the ceiling, the tones of an off-blue color shading into regions of gray and grayscale. The silent hum of the fan could be heard out in the living room, its electric vibrations resonating off of the otherwise dead-sounding house. The faint smell of cardboard and Hot-Pocket remains hinted a bland scent of what was meant to be a good and quick meal, and a distasteful one at that. Her eyes adapted to the scenery—a flat ceiling with no other dimensions to it to inspire creativity. Posters of bands, pictures of accomplished artwork, and loads of decorative material had nothing of appeal to her. It was a day without mother. One of many that would last for the rest of her lifetime…

Memories of that occurrence ran through her mind—how quickly it had all happened and how drastically it took place… Her mother, at the wheel, and her talking about a distant relative… Her mother's sudden halt in conversation as she tried to slow down the car; the sound of the tires losing traction as the car began to rotate at an angle… The honking of the other car, coming at a perpendicular angle as it also tried to slow down… Her mother's frightened voice telling her to hold on tight… The screech of the cars, the jerk and jolt—the smash and crashing noise—the thousands of shards of glass screaming, flying like a thousand tiny darts… The feeling of groundlessness… The light-headed fee—…

Darkness…

The smell of burnt rubber and hot metal…

The scent of death, and the darkness of the night…

Her mother's body, leaning to one side of the wheel as blood dripped from her face, her arms—everywhere…

The sudden installment of a new realization…

The proclamation of another life ending… Death on a hill announcing while bystanders lay gone—flies and maggots eat the rot that remains of their corpses…

"_It is done…"_

A call for help… Her voice, whimpering in pain and dying agony…

"Okay! Move it! Get some hands to help over here!"

"_There is nothing…"_

The sounds of men as they rush about…

Death raises its hand as the souls of the dead rise to their dismembered limbs…

"…_left for you to see…"_

"Okay! On the count! Two! One!"

Her faint, echoing voice in the darkness…

"Why…? How did it happen…?"

The motioning of death beckoning her to him…

"_Death comes to those expecting… I shall take you too…"_

"Give her back…!"

The sight of her mother's beautiful soul… Life growing dimmer, but the soul growing brighter… and brighter…

"She is a star…"

Brighter and brighter… Glowing… emanating… piercing the darkness…

Gone…

"_With that, there is nothing left…"_

"But… Is she in Heaven…?"

"Again, on the count…! One, Two…!"

"_I am nothing more…"_

Death seemingly disappearing… Sky darkening… Pain returning… … …

"It hurts…!!"

"It hurts! We've got somebody alive in here! Move…!!"

She opened her eyes… That was it… That was all that had ever happened… From there, she was rescued by the team of firemen and ambulance that had arrived on the spot a few minutes after the crash… Her mother had died when the car had flipped and rolled over… Luckily, she was on the opposite side of the impact, or she would have been killed as well… She was found unharmed, except for a few minor bruises on her arms from when the car flipped over… Her mother, on the other hand, had fractured her skull, and took many, many shards of sharp glass and metal to her body, killing her instantly… She was allowed to return home with her father, after being checked over by the ambulance and found unharmed. Her father had only heard the news of the crash, but was very grateful that his daughter Eve was alright… As for his Vaporeon wife… … …

She gave a soft sigh through her nostrils, the slow bits and pieces of reality coming back to her now as she realized that she was awake… She was "awake," but not completely in-tune with everything around her. She still hadn't had her first cup of coffee, as some would put it. As she would like to put it—there wasn't any coffee at all in the house, but it wasn't like she would have made herself a cup anyways, she didn't drink coffee. Only with her mother, or when her father was watching the news and wanted her to join him. But regardless, today was a day she would have to get some research done for her report… Her Biology class referred her to the library to check out a few books and newly published periodicals on the study of cells and recent discoveries concerning them. As much as she dreaded the thought of it, she knew she had to get it done today, because the Wake was in the afternoon, and the funeral tomorrow, so it wasn't like she was going to have any more time than that…

She gave another sigh, and rolled over to face her clock. Her fur and skin stretched her left eye against the bed sheets as she lay on her side to read the time. 9:07… It was getting to be about mid-morning. She grumbled and tossed herself back over again, throwing the blankets back over her head as a tingling sensation irritated her eyes. She rubbed them, only to find herself under another attack of tears. She started to cry again, hiding her face into the pillow to dry her tears. The heat under the blankets was almost intoxicating, and left her skin feeling moist with sweat. She threw the blankets off again, returning to cry into the pillow again… The air became cold, and the moist condensation of her sweat made her feel freezing, so back on the covers went… And off again… And on again… Finally, she gave a scream, throwing off the blankets, and sitting on the edge of her bed, face in hands. Death would come, but for only those who were expecting it...

It wasn't as cold outside as the air and weather forecast had predicted. A mild breeze still blew through the city, but the chill wasn't anything else she felt she had to worry about. Carrying her backpack with a bottle of water, her cell phone, mp3 player, and folder to put papers in, Eve walked down the streets of Tyscan just like any other day… The cooler breeze felt good at first in comparison to the stuffy house, but soon—just like the interior of her house—the air felt thick and saturated with particles and moisture that just filled the air. She didn't care—it was probably going to be a lot better in the library, anyhow… The church later on today wasn't so bad either—it had its share of days when the air could have been better, and days when the humidifier actually worked to do its job.

Down the street she went—backpack strapped across her back, and the sun to her right. Over the bridge she went, silently on her way. Looming overhead, another garbage-eating crow sat atop a street light, watching her as she went on by. It crowed a few times, then cocked its head to turn and watch her with its black-blue eyes. Eve wasn't listening to the crow. She wasn't listening to her mp3 player either, although she was wearing her ear buds… Music wouldn't do a thing to change her mood. It would only drown itself against a sheet-like shield of grey, failing to reach that pleasing part of her brain… It wasn't like she had the most uplifting music in the world, anyhow… The music from three weeks ago still remained on the audio device from a time when she needed inspiration for a story. …No, not a story—she couldn't write stories… For a poem… Well, if it could even have been called that…

She resumed her walking, taking not the time nor the care to watch where she was going. It wasn't like there was much to see around her anyways—the back streets that led to the library were always dark, dank, and… dead… Some people called it a ghetto, the condition the houses were in and the occupations of the residents… Potholes in the road, gravel mixed with cat litter, cigarette butts, broken bottle glass, and used condoms littered the streets while puddles reeked of spilled gasoline and engine oil. Rust and grime covered the buildings with a mark of desolation… No one really ever liked to go into the ghettos, because there wasn't ever anything much to go to the ghettos for in the first place…

_I come…_

She froze in place… The words sent a shiver down her spine as she took control of her situation, a feeling of fear and shock causing her to halt in her tracks. She spun around to take a look around her. The streets were dead, save for the cackling noises of a few crows cawing at each other from high atop the city heights. The windows in all the houses were black and dark—no one around near her could have made that noise—whatever the heck it was… Her heart filled itself with ice, and she felt a great presence surrounding her… It was probably just a bad feeling… Things like this happened usually after a traumatic experience. She had to learn that not everything she would hear for the next few days; few weeks; few months—even years, wouldn't always be what she would think she would be hearing…

She tried to think positive, "It was probably mother, letting us know she made it to Heaven… They say the dead can sometimes talk to someone before they leave for the afterlife… I just hope to God she made it up there…"

Talk about her mother didn't seem to help any, but discourage her. She resumed walking, leaving the ghetto behind her as she continued on her way... She had a homework assignment to get done, a Wake to go to, and no time to sulk around—no matter how hard it was going to be for her… Her head bent on low, she turned her music back up and resumed her trek to the library. At least there she could do something to keep her tears held back and her mind on other things…

He stepped out from a hidden alleyway, watching her…

The library had been opened for a little over an hour. As Eve found out, they were being completely honest when they told her that the library _never_ opened on time. They would always need to check over the building, and have the janitors and custodians clean up before opening the doors to the public. Despite that, the building was open and ready to serve her and whoever else it was that wanted to come inside.

The circulation desk appeared to be quite vacant, with the exception of a young Treecko girl in her late teens, checking books for cards and removing them. Last time that she was here, Eve found out what exactly it was that they were doing… They were removing the cards to insert special tags at the ends of the books that required the book to be scanned, kind of like one of those laser scanners at Kmart. She approached the desk where the lady stood, when the lady looked up with a smile.

"Hi, welcome to Tyscan Public Library, and good morning…!"

"Yeah, good morning to you too…" Eve replied in an exhausted voice, shivering as she felt the noticeable AC cooling off the interior of the building.

"What can I help you with today?"

"I was… … … I wanted to know if you could help me find anything new on the discovery of cells or anything on prokaryotes or… … …"

"Eukaryotes, right?" The lady tried to be helpful.

"Yeah, um… Do you know where I could find anything…?"

The girl pointed to a short set of stairs, ascending perhaps 5 or 6 steps. The building had been built on a hill, and had to make up for lost ground by having a handicapped ramp and a short set of stairs that would lead to the other part of the library.

"If you take those steps on upstairs, you'll find all the periodicals that we have. You're welcome to sort through them to find what you'd like, although I don't think you'll find anything in there…"

"Lucy—Lucy… What are you doing?" From behind the young Treecko came a rather unpleasant looking Staravia to the desk. The Staravia appeared to be in an ill-temper, despite it being closer to noon on a Saturday.

The Treecko girl shifted uncomfortably as she explained her situation, wishing to get out of her supervisor's way as the lady made her way forth. "She wanted books on, um… um…"

"Cells and Prokaryotes," Eve said flatly. The Treecko blushed in embarrassment.

"Cells and prokaryotes… And did you try looking up anything on the online catalog?" The Staravia asked.

Eve shook her head, "I… don't know how to use the catalog… I just wanted to… find one and—"

"—Lucy, hold down the desk while I show her how to do it." The Staravia replied as she walked out the swinging gate to come around the front of the desk. She gave a sigh, trying to smile as best she could towards Eve.

"Ready to begin?"

"Okay…" Eve said, and prepared to follow the Staravia wherever she went.

The Staravia led her over to where a group of computers sat, lined up not too far away from the circulation desk, and motioned for her to sit down. Eve took a seat in the chair, and watched as the Staravia hovered over her, smelling of old perfume. It practically made her want to gag… But she knew if she did, she would more than likely offend the old bird, and decided it was best not to do anything of the sort.

"When you're here on the desktop, double-click on the Search Circulating Books Catalog, and it will bring you up this…"

A small window appeared on the monitor screen; appearing to be a primitive but resourceful search engine hooked up to the computer's networking system. The old Staravia hen then clucked for her to continue, "From here, you have access to see all of the books here in our library. If you click here and type in a key word, it will search our entire book database to try and find anything that relates to the word you typed… You wanted to find something about cells and prokaryotes, right?"

_Souls for stars…_

Eve shivered and gasped, jumping nearly out of her chair for a moment. She thought she had seen a figure on the computer opposite of her…

"Oh…! Sorry—did I frighten you…? Or maybe I stepped on your toe—here, let's get this computer chair moved out of the way…" The lady Staravia moved the chair, apologizing for her intrusion. Eve moved the chair with her, but not before looking up to check at that computer again… Not a soul sat at the computer… Not one person was present in the room… And yet, a dark feeling could be felt creeping over her…

"Souls for stars…?" she whispered to herself.

The Staravia continued on, typing the words into the search engine to check the output of results. Eve cleared her throat before asking the lady Starvia. "I'm sorry, miss—did you say something a few moments ago…? Like, not just about maybe stepping on my foot, but… before that… Did you say anything about… souls for stars…?"

"Souls for… what? Did you say stars…? No. No—I didn't. Why—was that something else you were looking for…?"

Eve shrank under her intimidating and snappy voice. She gulped and shook her head, replying rapidly, "No, I wasn't. Sorry."

"Now then…" The Staravia said as she returned back to the computer, scrolling through several dozen books about cells and prokaryotes. "We have a number of books about them. What exactly was it that you were looking for?"

"I was… well… It's for a report, and… I just… needed to find something recent about cells so that I could write a report on it…"

"Write a report on something recent?" The bird nagged.

"It could be about anything!" Eve added desperately. The drilling voice and questions of the Staravia were starting to make her feel uncomfortable.

"Diseases… Cancer… New organelles… Just… anything to do with cells…"

The Staravia gave a sigh, slightly closing her eyes before she replied to her with a small smile, "…Well, sounds like you're going to need to be thinking a bit more about what you wanted to try and look up. Why don't you take a look through our encyclopedia on cells… It's right here on the list—Rufan's Encyclopedia on The Microscopic World. It's in the Reference section, but if you wanted to go take a look, bring it to a desk and read or whatever…" The Staravia interrupted herself to go back to the desk, returning with a scrap sheet of paper and a pen and then resumed her position beside Eve. She began to write something down on the piece of paper rather quickly, in sharp cursive writing that she only had little trouble reading or understanding.

"…then, you'll want to look up this call number." She handed Eve the scrap sheet of paper, with the Dewey Decimal system of recognition being her only "guide" to what she was going to write about.

Eve closed her eyes briefly and sighed unnoticeably. She got up from the desk, uttering her thanks before hopping off into the library to continue her search.

"You come back to the desk if you need more help. We're willing to assist you, you know…!" The librarian Staravia said out loud as Eve made her way through the library.

Finding the books weren't as hard as she had thought. Amidst the thousands of Reference and Media Reference, the Rufan's encyclopedia set stuck out like a sore thumb down in a dimmer-lit area of the library shelves. Large and weighty, it had to have been at least a good 10-pound book… and worth probably seven-times that amount in British pounds… Nevertheless, the bulky text sat on the top-most shelf, just out of her reach… It always had to be that way… Even her mother criticized how short she was… If only there was a way to talk to her again…

_There is…_

Eve shivered again, but this time feeling much more annoyed than before. She gave a growl before bending over to reach the foot stool that sat at her feet. Maybe it was her mother's spirit, teasing her and only trying to uplift her mood… But then again, why did it make her feel so cold…?

"You can make yourself a well-educated man here, reading these books…"

Eve gasped and jumped in fright as she looked up to see where the voice was coming from. A little ways in front of her, a tall man in a cream-white business suit and hat stood atop a small step-ladder, reading a book of some sort. The man's face and identity were hidden behind the book, which appeared to be about money and banking. She glanced at him for a moment before brushing aside her hair, looking to the ground for a moment.

"Oh… yeah… Sorry—I didn't notice you there… I was just getting this foot stool… I—"

He was gone.

She shivered. He was gone. A tall man like that, on top of a four-foot ladder, and he was gone. How could he have left like that…? What was going on with her today…? Was someone trying to tell her something…?

_Just read, dammit…_

The high-pitched ring of blood flowing through her ears… She could feel her heart beating quickly as she felt a sense of madness echo inside of her… Panic and fright—the feeling of a thousand lost souls and hundreds more forgotten in a realm of un-begotten lust… A shrill breath of laughter, a dark pick of dashes… accenting and punctuating the blacks of the eyes—white! The twisted sense of a meaningful word, it is dea—…!!!

…

…_Hello, are you…_

…_home… _

_I wanted to…_

_Uuwaaaauuugh…_

"It danced… like a great big genius thing… Why was… this… nonsense…? I can't even—"

—_Aaaaauuugh!!_

"It won't make sense… It's all thoughts and memories, even… "

_Hello…? _

_Hello, where are you…?_

_Please come take me home… I want you…_

_If there was a way…?_

_Home…!_

_Home…!_

_Home…!_

Eve awoke, finding herself flat on the ground where she had been. At her side, the _Rufan's Encyclopedia of Microscopic Organisms_ lay close beside her. Her forehead felt like it was swelling, too… Feeling her forehead, she gasped and winced, feeling a great big bump just screaming with pain. She quickly took out her wallet, opening it up to check her face in the tiny mirror inside. A gash had torn at her skin, and had left a hefty bump on her forehead. How was she going to explain this to her father…?

She gave a groan, flipping close the wallet before she lay flat on the ground. Second instinct and nature told her to get up, and so she did, taking the encyclopedia with her to a better-lit area than it was in the library shelves. She took the book with her, rose up to her feet, and then walked out of the shelves, still wondering what happened…

The book proved to be very resourceful, but at the same time a bit confusing. So many terms were written in Latin—it was hard to understand them, let alone what they were also known as. She figured she would do something on ancient bacteria found on Mars, since there appeared to be an interesting article written in the encyclopedia about it. So many theories, so many suggestions… Would her teacher allow her to use this…? Her teacher wanted pure, straight facts. But she did argue a good point that most of what was science was a collection of theories that were being constantly disproved or built into greater working theories. But regardless, she was a high school student. A_ high school_ student! It would have been different if she was in college… But that wasn't for another three or four years from now. She didn't know. She didn't even think she wanted to go to college. And if she did, she'd become a doctor. A doctor of medicine, because that was something she always wanted to do. But she wasn't. Nope. Too hard. Well…

_You never know, unless you try…_

"Go eff-off and leave me alone…" She grumbled.

He came…

_It isn't fair to judge without first having a fair trial…_

"… … …"

_All I want to do is to help you…_

_When I see others in pain… I want to help them so that it doesn't hurt anymore…_

Eve shivered. Was she hallucinating…?

"Who are you…?"

There was a strange ring in the way he said his name…

_Hortus…_

She blinked, seeing a shadow-faced man sitting across from her at the table. To the rest of the world, it would have appeared that she would have been staring into space…

She cleared her throat, "I'm –"

_Eve… Yes, I know about you._

"But… How…? I mean… Why have you been following me…?"

_I've been sent here to keep an eye on you… You brought me here yourself, you know…_

Eve blinked, confused about what he was telling her.

"I… brought you here…?"

"Miss… Miss…!"

Eve blinked, looking to her right to see Lucy, the Treecko girl, approaching her. She stood not too far away from her, a concerned look on her face.

"Is everything alright? We just heard a loud noise and… Oh, oh my gosh…! Your forehead, it's…"

"I'm alright," Eve smiled, although she was still nervous about the cream-suited man next to her, "I was trying to get a book off the top shelf, when it fell and hit me. I'll be fine…!"

"Are you sure? Want me to run and get you an ice pack for that?"

"Mmm—I'll be okay, I think. Thanks, though…" Eve nodded.

"Did you find whatever you were looking for…?"

"Yeah… I'm fine now. I'm just… talking with this guy here who…"

Eve froze, turning to notice the man had disappeared. She blinked a few times, the dark feeling coursing itself through her veins…

"Well… he was here… a moment ago…"

"Hmm…" Lucy shifted, unsure of whether to leave or not. She gave it a few moments rest before she spoke up. "Well, if you need anything at all, please come right on up to the desk and talk to any of us. We would be glad to help."

"Thanks…" Eve said as Lucy walked away… What was going on here…? Why was that man appearing before her…? What was it that he had said, and what did he mean by all of it…?

"Hortus…"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Dad, I'm home!" Eve said hurriedly as she came on through the door. She went to set her things down on the table in the kitchen. The table itself hadn't been used much since she passed away. Tokens of minor value—shells, drawer knobs, small dinosaur toys and finger puppets, and a few things collected inside a small brown reed bowl on the table. Bananas hung from their little hanger, while newspapers from several days before still sit, some with essence of coffee lingering on their pages, while grocery bags housing tomatoes from a neighbor's outdoor garden waited to be sliced for salad.

Eve opened the refrigerator, taking out a Minute-Maid apple juice, and proceeded to drink it while she checked the message board. …No—there wouldn't be any messages for her, or for anyone else for that matter. Her mother was the only one who wrote anything on that dry eraser marker board… Notes from past grocery lists, an important number from a forgotten time, and small doodles she and her mother would draw of each other, sometimes doing the strangest or most absurd depictions… The current creation depicted her mother strangling an umbrella, calling out "Come Here, MY PrettY!" On the opposite, her father stood with arms spread, "At least it's not my socks!" Eve was the girl with panicking eyes, screaming, "Oh God! It's another OnE of heR HEavYEr pErIods!" …To say in the least, her family was another one of those… rather… odd families… It was one thing that they took great pride in, however… But, now…

Her father, a rather handsome-looking flareon sporting a well-built chest, a strong chin, a muscular neck, and a good tone to his body stepped into the living room, the next room over. He gave a yawn, but appeared to be quite awake, despite not having his first cup of coffee. The lack of their mother around had taken its toll on him probably just about as badly as it did her. He appeared to be more worn out since she died… Probably from all the tears he cried, and having to double his responsibilities as a father and a mother were likely suspects to his change in attitude… He used to be a humorous father—one who had high expectations, but was still there to give a loving hand when his help was ever needed. His charm and wit were also some of his finer features… But what was truly amazing about him was… that he was a loving father. One did not need to know what he did to see that about him. His ability to sense a problem a mile away was what made him seem, in some aspects, much more motherly than what any other father would be. Losing one of the ones he loved, it showed, had taken a part away from him… He was quieter now, and less able to express his love to his daughter… In some ways, it hurt her more than ever, feeling as though she had lost both her parents instead of one of them… But he tried, and she could see that… The only worry was, would he ever be the same…?

"I'm back from the library…"

"Ahhhh—good… You were, um… doing some research for a class?"

"Biology. I was doing it on cell research for a report. It's due on Tuesday, but I wanted to get a head… I mean… at least a bit of it… A head start would have been… … …"

The pause… She knew why she had stopped… It had _happened_ a week ago…

The two continued to work in silence, each biding their own time. The father was glancing at old family photos thoughtfully, while Eve was watching a tiny chickadee hop from branch to branch just outside the window. The funny little bird had such dramatic movements, from the tilt of its feathery little head to the complete turns it would make in a tenth of a second. It proved fascinating, but a little less than what would be amiably entertaining.

"Mother's gone…" The realization hit her again… Probably from some far-off memory of looking out the window with her mother…

Her father sat quietly in the next room. It was obviously a subject that he didn't want to talk about… despite the fact it was something bound to come up anyways… She heard him sigh, wiping his face with a spare hand as he sat himself down on a wheeling chair. There was a moment of awaited silence, as her father was prepared to say something that would require at least a bit more of his ability to focus…

"You ready for the Wake later on today?"

"Yeah… Got a… nice dress picked out…"

He sat quietly… Nothing like this should have ever had to befallen either of them…

"It isn't black… unless that's the color I should be, um… wearing… right…?"

"Yeah…" Her father whispered, much against his own will to speak. His eyes were obviously tearing over, and that sad sound to his voice suggested he was on the brink of crying again…

She paused for a time, drinking her apple juice…

Crying… her father…

She put down the juice on the kitchen table, walking into the next room where he sat, and hugged him. He hugged her back, trying to hold her in his lap the way he would of when she was a child… In a way, she still was his child… and for that reason, he wanted to hold her even closer. He gave a sigh, sniffling as he rubbed her back, her having fully sat on his lap, with her face around his shoulder.

"…It's gonna be a hard time for the both of us... But, we'll make it through…"

"Yeah…" she said, her own eyes starting to feel the salinity of the tears soaking through her pores. "I should be saying that… 'cause… we need both of us… er, both of our… s… E… Each other…"

"I love you, Eve… A thousand days more may pass, and I will still love you… The departure of your mother has left us this way, but… you are our baby, and… … … Well, "girl" now, but… You are the symbol of our love… and because we loved each other, we found love in you… And I will always love you, Eve… Make no mistake about that…!"

"I love you too, Dad…!" Eve cried, holding on tight to her father. Tears fell rapidly from her face, moistening her muzzle and drenching her father's undershirt. His strong musky smell mixed with that sensual smell of cologne and deodorant… He did indeed smell like a handsome father…

Her father also cried, and held her close to his heart… His tears wetted the back of her neck as he kissed her many times before holding her close to him again. He patted her back several times, and together they shared a somber moment of melancholy. Each wrapped in the other's arms, together they held on for a time of eternity… even if only a few minutes passed on by…

From over her father's shoulder, Eve managed to open her eyes to the world… She could see the dividing hallway, which split into two different paths to the two bedrooms. She gazed at the pale-white wall, noting how the wood rose four inches from the floor to add trimming to the wall… or how the wood floor was exceptionally shiny for not having been waxed in about a month… From behind the two, light filtered in through the clouds, which began to cover up the sun. Light trickled on in, only to be blocked by the curtains, which cast their shadows upon the floor. She noticed how the shadows moved, or how her father and she both had shadows which darkened the warm-looking floorboards…

Suddenly, Eve felt a chill run up her spine… She gave a gasp, clenching on tight to her father…

There was a shadow in the hallway neither light nor either one could ever produce…

She knew that shadow… She knew what that feeling was… She knew… who it was…

A click, then a heel of a dark brown leather shoe… connected to his pant leg… Her father could only pause momentarily to see what the matter with his daughter was… The look on her face was of pure shock…

"Eve…? Eve! Eve, what's the matter…?"

Eve remained stunned… Her breathing intensified…

"It's him… Hortus…"

Her father quickly glanced over his shoulder before turning the chair about. He glanced at the hallway while rolling the wheels across the wooden den floor. He watched the hallway for a moment before looking back towards his daughter.

"Hortus…? One of your friends…?"

Eve gravely shook her head.

"Well, then… Who's Hortus…?"

Her face showed she was purely terrified, whatever it was, and too scared to say much. He lifted her up, setting her down on the chair as he rose to his feet.

"You stay here then—I'll take care of this..."

"But, you can't… see…"

It was too late—he'd already gone through the hallway to investigate what trivial matters were frightening his daughter. He turned his head at the hallway, glancing first at Eve's room, then towards his room, before making his way into his daughter's room. What he didn't see meant that there wasn't anything there… Or did it…?

Static… vision blurring… A

Voice…

is…

Calling?

Calling…

But… that?

"_Hello, Eve…"_

Her heart sank… Her mind went blank… In a sense of shadow and mist, a form came to shape… He was there… Before her, the cream-suited man had appeared, the hat on his head shielding his eyes to disguise him from his enigmatic appearance. He appeared to be mostly transparent, only an apparition of the figure she had seen at the library was all that stood before her. He looked in her direction with those dark, empty shades… He began to approach her, walking slowly but silently…

"_Eve…"_ A dark, hollow emptiness to his voice…

Static…

Hard to hear…

Blood racing through ears…

Feeling faint…

She screamed, backing away from him… The figure only resumed to walk…

"Eve?!" Came the loud voice of her father, rushing into the room. Eve stared at her father, then at the apparition that came steadily closer… Could her father not see it…?

"_You were the one who summoned me…" He said to her… "You wanted to speak with your mother…"_

"I did, yes—I know I did, but I'm so confused! What are you and what do you want!?"

"Eve, what are you looking at?" Her father shouted, noticing the state she was in. Eve did not reply to him, but continued to converse with a shadow whose form was not that of the material realm.

"_I mean you no harm… Do you still wish to speak to your mother…?"_

"What do you want w… with me…?"

"What…? Eve, what is the matter? You look like you're talking to yourself…"

"_Your heart called for me… Your soul was dying to know… You said you'd give anything just to speak with your mother… one… last… time…"_

"Y… Yes…" Eve whimpered.

"_Go to the Wake with your father… You'll find that I'll be there waiting… You'll get a last chance to speak with your… mother… before she passes into the realm of the afterlife…"_

"Eve…?"

"How will I know it's you…?"

"Eve, are you listening to me?"

"_Oh, I'll be there… Same clothes, same 'appareil' as the French say… You'll see my cream suit… You'll see my brown, leather shoes… You'll see my dark, hollow shades…"_

She felt empty with shock… Those exact words… Those exact thoughts… She had thought those to herself—she didn't say anything…?

"Eve… Eve…! Eve, come on honey—slap out of it…!" Her father had approached her, slapping her face… The slap ended up being stronger than the effect intended… The slap triggered the disappearance of her state of consciousness… Eve felt herself drifting… drifting… drifting… In the darkness, she could still hear her father talking to her…

"Eve, I'm so sorry…! I'm so sorry, Eve… Eve, wake up… Eve…! Eve…!"

…

… …

… …

…Silence…

…

…

…

"…_Now then… Where were we…?"_

In the dark of her deepest dreams, the haunting image of that man appeared before her, dressed as he always had been… He began to walk towards her, his heels clicking the invisible floor as he went—suspended in an endless sea of darkness…

"_You'll find that I can communicate with others, even if I am not with you physically… Perhaps this is what they call 'fate…' Or, maybe we were destined to meet… Eve, my powers are far more powerful than any material force… It is beyond anything that this world has known… Past the knowledge that is E.S.P… With it, I can talk with the dead… bring back forgotten memories…change the way things were meant to be… _

" _I can help you… I can heal you… I can do anything you'd want me to do…"_

"No, you're not…!" Eve growled in her dream world… Or was it…?

"Y… You're a… a fake …!"

"_I'm afraid you are most absolutely mistaken… With me being here as I am now, your claim stands little chance against my visual credibility… Perhaps now is not the time to advertise—money makes the world go 'round, and I have spent too much time convincing you as it is…_

"_Trust me Eve—you will see me again… At the Wake… It is there that I will grant you your most dearest wish of all…"_

Eve glared in anger… How could he know what wish was her most desired…?

In a spiteful comment of disgust, she ignorantly asked, "My mother…? Could I speak with my mother again?"

"_But of course…" _He replied… There was a certain hesitancy about his voice… and it was that which disgusted her…

"What do you want from me…?"

"_Oh, oh—nothing, child…! I do not request anything from you at all…"_

"You're trying to flatter me… I'm not interested…"

"_Flattery gets one nowhere. I am here as part of business. You summoned me because you said you would do anything if you could so have your wish granted...! Don't you want to wish your mother farewell before she parts off to the afterlife?"_

His words seemed to be more than credible… He spoke the truth, through what all seemed like lies… Not all angels were said to dress in white, nor were all devils dark and black…

"Y… Yes…"

Hortus gave a sigh, seemingly relaxed as he regained his composure, _"…Very well, then. It will be settled then… Your mother has been waiting for you, I hope you know…"_

"W… What do you mean?" Eve appeared confused.

"_She may be dead, but yet she is still living… Have you heard about out-of-body experiences…"_

"What of them…?"

"_You are experiencing one of those, right now… Don't you see? He hit you… Your father just struck you down with the back of his fist… He is worried he killed you…"_

"No! I'm asleep! I can still feel his warm arms around me, trying to wake me up…!"

"_Ah yes, but it appears as though you are dead… The same can be said about your mother… She too is suffering from an out-of-body experience…"_

"My mother is dead… I saw her die…!"

"_Hush… Hush, child… Of course she is dead… But only temporarily…"_

"Temporarily…? What, is this some sort of sick prank, like 'The Princess Bride'?"

"_Do you take me for a liar…?"_

"Quite frankly, yes! Actually!"

He seemed to stare at her for a while, a deep anger-felt aura emanating off of him. He walked to approach her, grabbing her by her neck.

Eve started to convulse, coughing and gagging while clutching her throat… Her father gasped, holding on to her, "Eve…! Hold on, Eve—you're choking! You're choking, Eve! Don't move—let me help you…!"

"_You've tried my patience…! If you ever dare to try that again, calling me a LIAR, then the pain you feel now will be nothing in comparison the day you die…!"_

"Let… go! Let me… g… go!!" Eve screamed.

Hortus held her above his head, her arms and legs writhing as she could feel the life energy being sapped from her body… His eyes were filled with a great anger, and his teeth were gritted in rage… Suddenly, his grip softened, as did his eyes… He seemed much more relaxed, a small businessman-like smile hovering his lips… He gently sat her back down on both feet before stepping away…

"_Forgive me, as I do lose my temper from time to time… You will still be able to speak with your mother, even if she is dead… To you, I will show you the way…"_

"Fcking ass!!" She growled between shaking clenched teeth.

"_Take your time recovering… I will see you at the Wake… Try not to do anything stupid…"_

With that, he walked away…

"Eve… Eve…! Wake up, Eve…!"

He never bothered to glance over his shoulder… Only his empty voice filled the void… _"Oh, and you'll be needing this, too… Wake up, Eve!"_

With that, he snapped his fingers…

Eve gasped, awakening before her father in a sudden rise. She grabbed her throat, coughing loudly as she tried to breathe. Her father backed away at the sudden rise, but immediately started rubbing her back… He held on to her, seeing now she was alive…

"Eve! Eve…! Oh, dear God—Eve…! I'm so sorry, Eve…! I'm so sorry…! Can you breathe…?"

Eve nodded, coughing again before she shook the tears from her eyes… She covered her face, and wept… This day was turning out to be more like a day in Hell than a day at the wake… Outside, the little chickadee lay dead at the base of the house…

He stood at the base of the tree, watching the little chickadee lay in its deathly silence…

"_The poor thing—it had flown into the window and broke its neck… Hmm… Well, there will be a better place for you too, little one…"_

With that, he placed his hands on the chickadee, and closed his eyes… There wouldn't be any more sun that day... Only clouds seemingly laden with rain...

Eve stood before her closet door, staring at the life-sized mirror hanging before her. She was gazing upon her reflection… Gazing at the one girl who did survive the accident… Her reflection, at least, would show who she really was… even if the outside world failed to see her through her eyes… Her deep, large eyes shone through the surface reflecting the light given off by the objects in front of it… Grey and blue, or blue and grey—it didn't matter… Her eyes were nothing more than slates of a depressing steel color, which would never show what true happiness she might have ever had…

She turned herself at an angle… Perhaps a different angle would dramatically improve her appearance… No… No matter what angle she would look at herself, she would always look the same… She wasn't beautiful… But that didn't matter—many girls thought of themselves in that way… She… wouldn't ever be happy…

Maybe if she cut her hair…? It wasn't unusual—most girls cut their hair nowadays… Her mother never really cared for it, but it wasn't like she didn't ever encourage her to do it… Speaking of which, what was she going to do about her hair today…? It wasn't anyone else's death—it was her mother's, and she felt she should look respectful for the one who brought her into this world.

She ran her fingers through her hair, removing a hair band from her pocket and tying her hair up in a ponytail. She posed in front of the mirror again, examining her appearance. It didn't look like anything appropriate for a wake… Off went the hair band, and on went on the head band. She looked in the mirror again. It looked presentable, right…? She seemed to doubt her own words, and with good reason—It was for her mother's wake, not a wedding. Because of that, hairspray was completely out of the question for a stylish hairdo. This wasn't a dance she was going to. There wouldn't be a dance afterwards, either… She gave a frustrated sigh, falling backwards onto her bed, and landed on her back. …Whatever was she going to do…?

"Mother's gone…" she said out loud…

Thoughts of her mother swirled themselves inside her head… Some were good… Some were things that could have been done better… Others… … …

She felt the tears come, and let them fall. No sense in holding them back—the tears would have come, regardless of how hard she would have held them back… Now she was crying… How… unemotional… She wished she had more feeling behind them—she had already cried her tears thoroughly earlier in the day… earlier in the week… earlier the day it had happened… The feeling behind it had died… much like her mother… How… ironic… The chances were of her crying about it again weren't too slim—just a happy moment would have to pass, and then the tears would start up again. That was right—it wasn't like she never cried after something great had happened, anyways… She was always crying… There wasn't any point to it, either, and both her mother and her father were always assuming she had some sort of a depressive disorder or something… Today felt like shit…

She gave a long, frustrated scream, her shriek echoing in the hallway, and piercing the ears of those inside the house… Dissatisfied, she let out another… And another… And another… Her father wouldn't care—he wouldn't even notice, really… He wasn't home… He went off to the post office to check the mail… He wouldn't be back for another half an hour…

That damned figure… That damned cream suited man… All this fcking shit started the moment that he appeared in her life… What the hell was he, and what the hell did he want…!?

"… … …"

She half expected him to say something… He always came out at that time… Once her thoughts were consumed with anger and frustration—he would always say something sudden and surprising… He would freak her out with his seemingly charming tone and hollow words and phrases…

…But he wasn't there to say a thing.

This puzzled her… He always spoke—he ALWAYS spoke… But now he was gone…

For a moment, she felt really glad… Glad to have him away, glad to be freed of his maniacal nonsense... glad to be away from those words which hurt her…

…And yet…

He was there. Up—in the corner! He was—

"…He's gone…" she blinked, looking back at her mirror… She knew she had seen him there, but…

"_Eve, my powers are far more powerful than any material force… It is beyond anything that this world has known…"_ His words echoed in her memory.

…Maybe he really was omnipotent…?

More silence… It didn't seem like he was going to be coming back… Just her luck… Some creepy guy shows up in her life, promises to bridge a communication gap between the living and the dead, and then just disappears all of a sudden… How charming…

The Bible… Maybe the Bible would know something about all of this… Eve never really became a dedicated member and reader of the Faith, although she believed in most of it… Some of it, she just wasn't really too sure of—it made her uncomfortable to think about religion… But maybe religion was something she needed to get a hold of… Maybe she needed to talk with someone about all of this…?

The Bible was nowhere to be found... Not even any of her Sunday School handouts seemed to exist anymore… Nothing else, other than a small colored in picture of a little girl on Jesus' lap, smiling happily with the words "God Loves All The Little Children of The World" written right below it… She'd colored it when she was about six, and since then never took it off of her wall… How helpful that was going to be was thought up as pure sarcasm.

"_For __God so loved the world that He gave His only__ begotten __Son__so__ whoever believes in Him shall __not perish__ but have everlasting life…"_

Another great and wonderful line from the Bible, but it would still solve nothing…

"_Our Father, who art in heaven hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen."_

"Hmmm…" The phrase almost seemed to fit, but… there was still something lacking about it…

Perhaps it had something to do with the Devil…? Maybe Hortus was actually the Devil himself…? There stood a chance… Perhaps the force that she was dealing with really was the devil… But… if he was, how would she have summoned him…?

Those of weak heart, she thought… The Devil was always hounding down those who he could take from the Lord… He would never give up, and was always in his best disguise... He could look very beautiful to those lured by beauty, or terrifying to those convinced by things more horrific than anything the world had ever seen… He could sound convincing, or he could sound as plain and obvious as the oldest trick in the book… The only way to keep him away was to lock him out of the heart, and trust solely in the Lord God, and the Faith… Even then, he would only try harder…

…But, would he lie…? She never really knew about that part… Even in the face of death, the Devil should still be able to reveal himself… He WAS once an angel, after all…

As she continued to lay there in deep thought, she hadn't really noticed the time… She continued to think, drifting into a gentle sleep as she laid there on her bed… It wasn't until her father came home that she woke up…

"Eve! Eve, are you ready to go?"

Eve jumped up from her bed, eyes wide open and awake, ready for most anything. She tried to swallow, finding that a large piece of phlegm had lodged itself in her throat. It was hard to swallow. Even harder to dispose of…

She coughed, cleared her throat, and tried to speak. No words would come out because her mouth was so dry… She tried swallowing her spit to do the trick.

"Eve?" Her father walked into the hallway.

"Y… rraaah!" Her voice made a funny noise as the phlegm dislodged itself. The phlegm flew from her mouth, getting caught on her carpet floor. It was completely revolting, but she'd forget it sooner or later… It would dry up and disappear—it was only throat mucus after all…

"You ready to go?" Her father knocked on her door.

Eve glanced at herself, and gave a gasp. She hopped up off her bed, rushing to her closet to find the dress she would be wearing.

"Found it…!"

Plop. On the bed the dress went. Quickly, she removed her shirt, tossing the thin, cotton-fabric article into her hamper before quickly removing her pants. Light-blue silky hipster panties covered her bottom, right at the moment her father came into the room.

"Eve—? OH—oh, my goodness—sorry!" He closed the door, observing her privacy.

Eve flushed red. Could this day get any worse…?

On went the dress… It wasn't too difficult, if only it didn't have the zipper in the back… Looks like she was going to need her dad to do that…

"Dad?"

"Yes, hon?"

"Could you zip up the back of this dress…?"

Her father hesitated for a moment.

"Are you completely dressed?"

She couldn't help but to laugh… "No dad—I'm bare-butt naked and want you to zip it up before I put it on. Yes dad—I'm dressed and it's safe for you to come in now."

Her dad came in through the door, trying not to look at anything in the room. He just wanted to respect her privacy was all—he wanted her to feel that her room and all its belongings were of her own personal business, not his. She had learned that from the faces he would make if he had to go into her room. She had to admit—He was a sweet heart dad, but even then he was just a little silly…

She turned her back to him, indicating the zipper at the base of her back. Seeing the zipper, he approached her back, and held the fabric of her outfit together. Slowly and gently, he zipped up the zipper, finally closing the last bit of her beautiful black dress. It wasn't much of a dress to be worn at informal occasions. It looked more like something that would have gone along to a graduation party, or for a special night out. It was indeed very beautiful; her aunt bought it for her birthday one year, when her aunt took her out shopping. She had worn it several times since, but never for much more than a special occasion. Long and delicately woven black fabric elegantly weaved its way down, from collar to ankles, a collar with an intricate textile pattern which greeted her slender and lightly rounded neck. There was an optional shawl to wear about her shoulders, but it looked like it would be something for a more uplifting event… like prom… That was something she would have wanted her mother to have seen, but…

"Got it all set for you… Are you… going to wear a necklace or anything to go with it, maybe one of your thin silver necklaces…?"

"Yeah… I'd like to, but…"

Her father glanced back to look at her questioningly.

"I… … don't know if it would be right…"

"Which one, Eve? It should be fine, I'd think…"

"…Can I wear mom's wedding necklace?" Eve asked bluntly. Her father was stunned. The sudden impact of her words left him speechless, his mouth drawn open in utter astonishment that he really didn't have much to say…

"Mom told me that I could wear it and keep it on my wedding day, or on the day she died… I was just wondering if it would be appropriate if I could wear it for her on her wedding day to the Lord…"

Her father's lower lip scrunched up close to the top. It hurt him pretty bad to think that all this was happening so soon… that decisions would have to be made and arrangements dealt with sooner than expected… He nodded his head noticeably a few times, his voice not much more than a restrained whisper…

"Yeah…" He nodded a few more times, turning away to look at the floor before returning his gaze back to his daughter. "Yeah… You… you can wear it… I mean… You should…" A tear dripped from her father's face…

Her face softened, and even a tear dripped from her cheek as she started to cry, "Daddy…"

He gave her a hug, and patted her back… lightly rocking her back and forth… It was going to be a tough time for the two of them… Where once there were three… there was now only two in that one white-tinted house…

The drive to the Wake didn't last very long… It took a few minutes to meet up with her relatives, who followed them from the gas station located ten blocks away… She remembered her and her friends used to take walks down to the gas station and get candy bars on an early day in spring, or ice cream sandwiches on a hot summer day while on the way back home from the basketball courts. Now, it had become the day's meeting place for a situation much more dire and… … …

It drove her mad… … …

The candy bar she held in her lap had been a present from her father, in hopes to at least show some care during this situation in crisis… It had begun to melt, the chocolate warm and squishing inside of the wrapper. She would have felt bad for not eating it, but the truth was—she was not hungry right now. Chances were, she would not be hungry for the rest of the day. The week had gone to shit, and she wasn't feeling at all very chipper on this lovely autumn day in October…

The building the wake was held in made it far worse than she had imagined… Dry… The air was extremely dry… like… she couldn't hardly breathe… She could feel her heart rate increasing while pressure felt to be pressing in on the base of her neck. Her mother's necklace hung from her neck—a beautiful silver piece adorned with three special diamonds. The diamonds did little to make her feel any better or "pure," as diamonds were said to be… No—that was something else… Just for the pleasure of it all, she should have gotten herself a $ bloodstone… It wouldn't be very funny if only others knew what they were for… She was humorous like that. She believed that the stones had that sort of power bestowed upon them, or that they were able to do the things others believed they would do. Bloodstones were said to sooth the mind and relieve the depressed mind… It sure would have been a whole lot of help to her, especially in a day like this day and age… Today of all days, to say in the least…

She received many hugs and kind words from friends and family… Some were crying, some were gossiping, while others would just stand around in the open moping… It irritated her… It was for her mother, after all… What was she doing? Not being heartless, but rather trying to get around in this congregation of sorrow and insanity… She couldn't stand funerals… They made her feel so… so… claustrophobic… At least she could try to be with her dad, but he today of all days was finding his comfort in conversation with one or two other family members… Perhaps she was being selfish. Perhaps she was being a bit moody. She had worn herself out from the studying earlier that day, and had forgotten to put deodorant on. Her shoes were killing her feet, and her underwear was getting stuck up her $$... So, yes—maybe she WAS feeling a little bit btchy, "thank you very much."

Her Aunt Sue had given her a compassionate hug, and smelled of that Mystic Rain spray she had gotten a month ago… Her Aunt Marcy had given her a card with all the names of her immediate family written on it, and told her she would be there in case she needed someone to talk to… Her cousin cried on her shoulder, and her best friends all gave her a group hug… It was all about giving comfort, but sometimes even a little bit of comfort was too much...

The most surprising was her grandfather, who hadn't come with hugs or kisses, an apology, card, nor even a gift… What he brought were words that did little to improve her self-esteem, or to aid in her recovery…

Her grandfather was in his early sixties, roughly around twenty-five years older than her mother. The man was a man of great strength, of courage, and a great sense of pride. At first glance, he appeared to be nothing but a heartless old man, but upon a closer look, one would find that he had the greatest heart of all… That others were of little heart to seek out the love and compassion he truly held… and it was his words that mystified her…

He approached with a specific air about him... People stepped aside as the old Leafeon advanced forth. Stopping before his grand-daughter Eve, he spoke to her clearly, which quite surprised her a bit.

"Eve, I am not a very compassionate man. I do not seek the sorrows of others to aid them comfort, nor do I ever have any intension of doing. Help will come to those who seek it, and life doesn't give away any freebies. If you expect to live the kind of life of as your mother did, then a long road ahead awaits you. Starting today, you will be expected to do great things; to stand up for yourself… You will feel the painful agonizing feel of defeat, the harsh words of a dictator, and the suppression and repression of your worst fears… Today is the day you become a woman, and not some juvenile delinquent. Stand up for yourself and others, and only then can you truly become all of what your mother ended up becoming." With that, her grandfather passed on by her to disappear amongst the crowd of friends and family.

She blinked, in awe and confusion… What could that old man have meant…? Did he just say what she thought he said…?

What… in the world…? It was… so strange…

At least he wasn't saying what everyone else was… His words were direct and determined to hit home… Even grandmother never really understood him half the time, but… at least he had a good heart…

Finally, it came. The Wake… The most torturous moment in her entire life… The casket… left open… for the entire world to see… Her mother's face—draped with a cloth over top… Jane was no more… Her mother Jane was no more… Under that draped cloth… Underneath that which hid the remains of one once living… The hideous corpse of inanimate flesh… So cold… Like a sin performed in utter guilt and fear… There she was… A shiver… Dead… A moment too soon, yet a moment too late…

Organ music stops… Man steps forward… Not another one of those men—no… stupid… hate them… always going on about things… I mean, to rule life… live life… is… whatever… … … …

A tall and sickly-thin middle-aged Glameow stepped up to the podium before the altar. His clothes suggested he was going to be the priest for the day's ceremony. His curved whiskers and cold toned fur expression gave her the shivers… He disgusted her…

The Glameow cleared his throat to begin… He appeared to be a cat all about posture. From his feet to his head, he was as tall and straight as an arrow, yet refined and soft-looking as a plush doll bought from a store…

"Dearly beloved… We are gathered here today to witness the death of beloved family member, Jane…"

The crying started…

"As we gather here today, we should remember that Death itself is not an ending, but a beginning to a new life beyond the reaches that any mortal man or woman could ever perceive… A land where riches are told… Warmth from the Holy Father… and peace everlasting… It is a time where we who gather here have come at last to see the departure of one so young… Yet, we know that the Lord has chosen a time and a place for everything… It was her time to come, and the Lord will know let her come with him up to the farthest reaches of Heaven, to be greeted and granted passage by St. Peter at the gates, and there to kneel before the throne of the Holy Father…"

"No kidding…" Eve winced, feeling her tears daring to fall without her consent. She felt a cold presence within the room. Probably started by the ceiling fans above… It was quite cold in the building, after all…

"Now, let us rise and sing tribute to the Lord… May the songs and prayers of our hearts comfort one another, and bring full glory to the Lord our God…" Everyone rose… It was that systematic process of rising and sitting… It had begun…

"_I love you Lord, And I lift my voice_

_To worship you, Oh My Soul Rejoice_

_Take joy my King, In what you hear,_

_May it be a sweet, sweet sound,_

_In Your Ear…"_

Her lip trembled… She felt anger… Happiness… and anger… Dead… and beautiful… One of life's simplest forms of angst… She… just… wanted to cuss and swear… She just wanted to say foul things… Curse it… She hated it… And yet it was so dang pretty…

_**"**_On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,

_the emblem of suffering and shame;_

_and I love that old cross where the dearest and best_

_for a world of lost sinners was slain._

_So I'll cherish the old rugged cross,_

_till my trophies at last I lay down;_

_I will cling to the old rugged cross,_

_and exchange it some day for a crown…"_

"Mother was my cross..." Eve's voice shook… It was terrible… It was just terrible… She never thought it was going to be this rough… Well, she did, and… It was… It… It was… just… … … as she imagined it…

Her cousin, Tracy, sat next to her… Seeing Eve cry in angst, her immediate reaction was to hug her… The Eevee only wanted to comfort her cousin… She just wanted Eve to feel safe and comforted by those who loved her… Eve knew what her cousin Tracy was doing… and she respected it… She clasped her cousin's hand and cried on her shoulder... Her father, watching her, held on tight to his funeral program, and wiped a tear from his eye. His mother and father sat next to him—Eve's other pair of grandparents… They frowned sadly, and comforted him with their presence…

Eve cried in her cousin's arms… On her cousin's shoulder… On her cousin's dress… She found some comfort there, even if it did seem and feel a bit awkward… She continued to cry though… The smell of detergent, freshly pressed fabric, and women's deodorant did little to comfort her, but rather tried to redirect her mind to other thoughts… She just wanted to cry…

"Eve…" Tracy said sadly… Her face started to wrinkle up as well—her mouth falling to an open frown as her eyes watered and darkened over. She cried as well, crying on top of Eve's head… The two remained in each other's arms, and cried over their loss…

"I'm here for you, Eve… I'm here for you… Please don't you ever forget that… I'm here Eve, because we're family, and we love you… We love you, Eve…! We love you…!"

"I love you too, Tracy…!" Eve cried again.

The Wake continued, and several prayers were said… Several more hymns were sung… Several more hearts were broken… In the House of the Lord, a sense of sorrow and righteousness filled the air… Jane, Eve's mother, had begun the transition from the material world to the afterlife…

The Glameow cleared his throat after a short prayer of thanks and glorification of the Holy Father, and announced that it was time… "Friends… Brothers and Sisters of our holy congregation… Now is the time we should see our sister off to the Lord. Like Him, she is risen, like Christ has on the third day, and was seated at the right hand of the Father. Since this is the day we shall see her no more, let us gather together here, and give our last respects before we continue on with the service."

The line started to move as pews upon pews of people rose from their seats to gather in line to see the casket. Eve stood with her cousin Tracy in front of her, her kind and loving father behind her, and some-odd twenty or so individuals in front of her. To think this had all happened so soon… That she would not be seeing her mother again… It was a repetitious thought that she couldn't help thinking about… It was all a nightmare with no end… A dream that had taken an awful twist… … …

"_**May you rest…"**_

Her hair stood on end as she felt a sudden jolt in her heart. She froze, shocked in place of her experience… He… was there...

Should she turn…? A slight adjustment of the head revealed the cream-suited man… standing before the coffin of her mother… a respectful and observant look on his face… Hands crossed, he walked forth towards the coffin, taking off his cream-colored hat…

He closed his prayer with the sign of the holy Trinity… _**"May you rest in peace… And may God bless your soul…"**_

Eve could feel her soul screaming…

"_Welcome, Eve…"_ His words hissed through seething teeth…

Eve felt herself tense up… Her muscles became taut as her gaze became fixed and locked on his very being… The cream-suited man, in the house of God, was standing there before the coffin. Her legs moved without feeling; involuntarily, she found herself approaching him… Her blood was ringing in her ears; a most deafening and mind-blocking noise… She could not think, except for thinking it was him… She could not see, except for seeing it was him… She could not "be…" …without him "being" there with her…

Her breathing intensified, as her heart sped up to a racing beat—the madness of the man in front of her driving her insane, and to lose all conscious thoughts and feelings…

His hand gestured her forth—the pearly-white gloves of a gentleman beckoning her to him… The eerie look of evil hid in his glowing silver-red eyes behind those dark and tinted shades…

"_Come… to me…"_ his voice reeked of one who was ominous…

She stepped slowly to him… The funeral home, and those around her slowly faded into nothingness… There was only her, and there was only him… The casket of her mother flickered dimly before being lost amidst the void of the shadows…

"_Be one… with the power… Become one… with me…"_

"L…Lucifer…" her realizing consciousness managed to mutter out…

He gave a most fiendish laugh, smiling widely as he corrected her, _"No… I am not the one whom they call Lucifer… Nor am I the one whom they call Satan, for I am neither… I… am Hortus…"_

"A demon…"

"…_Perhaps…"_ Came his ever-open answer…

"_Your mother, Eve… She is waiting for you—she is listening…"_

"Listening…? To what…?"

"_For three days, her soul has been waiting to talk to you… She has missed you, and the times you used to have together…"_

"I just wanted to wish her farewell… I wanted her to have good luck in th… the afterlife…!"

"…_But in order to do that, I will have to take something from you. . ."_

"What would that be—… …!?"

He came at her—faster than lightning through the thunderous open skies… His very being tore into the life of her, and his form became one with her body…

She gasped, clutching her throat as she could feel him moving violently inside of her. Her organs felt like jelly, and it felt like someone was moving their hands around inside of her—searching for the essence of her being…

In the real world, family members gasped as Eve started to breathe with great difficulty… She was grasping her chest, and threw herself against her mother's coffin, making loud noises as she struggled to regain herself. Her father gave a shout, and rushed to her side, trying to hold her steady. Her arms thrashed out at him, forcing him back with some sort of supernatural power… He flew down from the raised platform and backwards into the arms of those behind to catch him. Eve started to convulse, shaking badly and unable to scarcely hold herself upright… She appeared as though someone were shaking her like a doll, slapping her face to simulate such violent head movements… The people around her were too scared to do anything—it appeared Eve was becoming possessed…

"Eve!!" Her father yelled, but the words fell upon deaf ears. Eve was no longer within this realm—her spirit and mind had gone to a place outside of her body, even if only a few feet from the scene… But no one could see what was happening…

Eve screamed, shaking and writhing as she tried to free herself from the grasp of the hideous thing… She could feel herself being torn and ripped, her insides putting up a valiant fight against the unknown intruder which had come to do them harm. A voice inside her whispered for her not to give up… not to give in… not to let this become of her… She listened to it, the whisper having given her enough strength to fight back the demon that had entered inside of her.

Slowly and sickeningly, the thing from inside of her began to reappear from her chest. The familiar shape of Hortus' head was slowly taking shape as the top of his skull down to the bottom of his chin was being torn away from her body. However, his face was not as what he had been before… His face had turned to rot—skin and flesh intertwined into a decaying mass scarcely able to call itself remains of one once living… From his eye sockets, where his wicked silvery grey eyes once worked their demonic stare, fluids and remains of his eyeballs had all but contained their shape—having shriveled into a plaque-like substance, and the muscles and nerves gone black with rot. From the depths of his optical nerve ends, a demonic glare of light shimmered red, like the taken blood of an innocent. His skull was disproportionate, having molded into a crinkled, withered mass of destroyed matter, cracked and chipped in a thousand places, leaving certain areas void of matter, where no contents of his wretched skull save for a few black streak marks and scratches covered atop the temporal area. The jaws of her perpetrator were of thick bone stained with the blood of those who suffered at his hands, leaving behind no trace of their material existence. His jaws were obviously strong—she had noticed that of him when she first met him… but what she had failed to see were what his jaws held between them… Dark, obsidian-like teeth, gleaming wickedly like the moon during an eclipse, and hundreds of them… each one long and sharp like razors that could pierce the skin merely upon impact… Not only did he have the two primary rows in front, but a second, and even third row could be seen decking the interior of his mouth—all glistening in the coal-dark night with dead silvery light… All perfectly shaped, and disgustingly proportionate…

She screamed and struggled, fighting back the tears as she continued to force him out of her with her will and spirit. She could feel the arms and hands of her soul struggling to maintain balance with her body while containing and repelling him from staying inside of her… She threw herself upon the ground, desperately trying to smash his skull in hopes of freeing her body from him, but to no avail… His skull merely contracted and loosened its way out of her grip—slippery as wet soap in a person's hands. She fought to keep him contained he tried to force his way back into her, her wanting to be away from his congested mouth of death… He forced her with the strength of his being, and completely knocked her over on to her back. She gave an agonized yell, and began smashing him bluntly with her fists… Raising her with his demonic powers, he made an attempt to loosen her grip. In his anger, he let loose a piercing scream which shattered the void-like air, causing her to shrink and cower to him… He was losing ground, and was now unable to keep himself inside of her. Seeking his chance, he then thrust his hand towards her face, and kept a powerful hold on her forehead…

Eve screamed, using her hands to try and release his hold on her head—pulling, yanking, and relying on all her spiritual force to move him… Her forehead felt hot, and a burn mark ate into her skin—leaving a ring around her forehead… Blood spilled and dripped, sizzling from her open wound as it made contact with his venomous bones, and draining the life force from inside of her… A piercing sting attacked her sides, and soon several more rings formed over her body… On her ears… On her upper arms… On her hips… and… on her tail—all of which leaked the precious blood of life... Red as roses… Dark as chocolate… Deep as incense… Scarlet as… blood…

She could feel her skin burning… Darker and darker, it sizzled and crinkled beneath his grip—darkening from the points of the circle-rings… Her screams were drowned by his hideous laughter, laughing like a skeleton coming from a closet in a nightmare… His laughter was shrill and cold, and sent an endless stream of icy shivers down her spine… There was no escaping from him now… He'd soon as rather kill her than to let her go, or to let her suffer… If only someone could save her… If only Jesus—if only He were here now to save her… If only…!

"A miracle—please… God…!" she whimpered, having curled up and protecting herself…

His laughter continued… Even when her eyes closed, it was as though they were still open—she could still hear him and see him as though he was realer than reality itself…

"Please, God… A miracle… Please…!" she cried…

"_You seek your mother! Well, your mother is as good as dead should you still be seeking her…!!"_

"Please, mommy!! Please tell God—a miracle! Please save me—a miracle!!!" she screamed…

A sudden beam of light, and a holy glow penetrated the beast from within her chest… The light was more pure than anything ever to be seen… Its light was both warming and comforting—more exhilarating than anything, and bipolar in its coming… Eve already felt as though three pairs of hands were helping free her from the grasp of Hortus, and already the demon himself was being pulled earth-center-ward… She felt herself becoming free, and felt herself saved… So… this was what it was like to be saved…! She felt her pains disappear, and herself become light again, leaving the form of Hortus below… But, yet… … … …

Hortus gave an evil cackle… His horrendous voice laughed and cracked the sky like a wet whip upon naked skin… Even the hands that held her soon let her drift downwards, back down unto the dark sphere of the earth below her; the void which knew no light… Hortus' cruel gleam allowed him to grin wickedly as he growled…

"_That's right… You cannot escape me, child—for you have made a deal with me… Only the grace of your mother saved your soul from totally belonging to me… But, with no one above to take you in, and with no permissions to take you down below, you are a wandering soul lost between both realms, and condemned to the very first level of Hell itself…"_

Eve's heart dropped as she felt the life drained from her veins again… Empty was her body as all the liquids of the precious life force were drained and pooling down to a puddle… Her feet made contact with the earth, and soon she found herself on all fours in her own blood—her skin and dress saturated and wet, glistening red… Down went her hair, draping over her eyes, and hollow was her gaze when once there was life…

She bit her lip in frustration, feeling the lump grow sickeningly in her throat… She realized her doom was at hand, and that now there was no escape… She was unofficially property of the Devil now, and what chance she stood of being with her mother was now gone forever…

Hortus grinned, having stood not thirty feet away from her… In a reverse process of rot, flesh and skin rapidly began to form back on his body, returning him to his "former" state of being clad in cream with his hollow shades… Only his eyes reflected anything of what had been before, but even they too were masking themselves behind a false silvery glow. As the angels departed and left, Eve shook and trembled with fear as Hortus placed his hands back into his pockets. He glanced upward, watching as the ecliptic sky soon hid the sun behind obsidian clouds, lost for what seemed a thousand miles away… He reached into his coat sleeve and pulled out a book—the same book he was found reading in the library about wealth, banks, and money. He read for a while as she broke out into tears—her tears mixing with what little life was left in her body as she too began the slow descent into death… Her voice quivered as she cried, and her hands shook as the knuckles had gone white amidst the black which had become her fur. She could feel herself slowly dying, and unable to do much more… Soon, she would be dead, like her mother, but that there would be no funeral for her… There would never be a funeral for a girl who mysteriously disappeared…

The public had gathered around her form—she had hit her head against the sharp corner of the casket, resulting in a fatal wound caused by a broken artery. She had lost too much blood in such a short amount of time… Already, her face was turning white, and nothing that the emergency medical team could do would be able to stop the blood. It was a sad and terrible thing to witness, and while many family members drew in close to see what had happened, many also turned their faces away in despair… Minutes passed, but with no luck… Eve was going to die… Emergency Medical Transfer moved into the building quickly, bringing a stretcher to carry her away. The priest made a solemn prayer as the ambulance rescue team lifted her up, covering her face with a white linen-like sheet… The onlookers wept in fear and sorrow… Tracy buried her face in her cousin's jacket… Her father felt as though he had died—his family was now officially gone… Only the grandfather was the one to watch with stern eyes. As the ambulance drove away and the sirens screamed, it was he who shed only a single tear…

"Good luck, my granddaughter…"

Dead… She could feel it now—the warmth of her skin having left its state of comfort to be replaced with an eerie feeling of numb-ness… She could still feel, but in such a state it felt like a dream… But… she could walk… No—she could crawl…! She could move—mobility! She could reach out and escape from this monster, if only… if only…!

Hortus reached into his pocket, and pulled out his watch. He checked the time, watching as the moving seconds-hand ticked time away softly. He closed it again, returning it to his pocket, closed the book he held, and walked over to her mercilessly, returning the book back under his coat as he made his approach to her. Seeing her reach out to pull herself away from him, he stopped her hand by grinding it into the void-like ground with his square and sharp heel.

"Well now… Looks like your time is up…! And just on time, too. I was just about to get worried that you would never give up."

Eve screamed, pulling her hand away as she curled back up into a ball. "Give up…?! W… What…?!"

"You've lost too much blood...! Your material state could not hold you any longer, and so it passed on to become nothing more than just rotting debris for the flies. You're welcome to take a look if you'd like…"

She gasped, turning her glance back on over to where she had crawled from. Her self could be seen, hunched over in the pool of blood, wearing the exact same dress as when she had come to this place. Horrified, she stared in shock, scarcely able to make much more of a sound than a squeak.

Hortus chuckled thoughtfully, "Oh, but don't you mind—it will soon be nothing more than a memory… What matters does a shell hold if the truth is what lies inside…? You are here now with me, Eve…!"

Eve made a mad dash for her frame, desperately wanting to be herself again. Her hand raged with pain, but it was no hindrance—she needed to be herself again…! She couldn't bear the thought of having to be with this creature of nightmare from her visions…! She grasped on to her material body's shoulder, finding that the body wanted to absorb her hand completely. She hesitated for a moment, but quickly allowed her body to become one with her material form again.

It was only then that the pangs of death were ringing in her ears… A loud screech—something more deafening than Hortus' ear-piercing shriek from earlier, filled her ears and caused her to shrink, covering her ears. Deep, sudden cold filled her arms, which soon took over her entire being… It was deadly cold—like swimming in an ocean of ice… Her arms felt stiff and hindered movement, and she found that no matter how hard she willed her eyes to open—closed they would always be…

The crew aboard the ambulance kept a steady eye on her passing form. Her form twitched only momentarily, but no form of life was ever really made… It wasn't uncommon for the heart to start back up again as it went through its death throes, or for the body to twitch… Nerve movements, they were called… No matter what little twitching and slight movements she would make, it would still be unnoticeable to those inside the ambulance.

Eve felt herself being yanked back out by Hortus, whose look on his face was anything other than pleased. The sudden transition took a moment for her to adapt to the changes, but Hortus had other things in mind. He gave her a stern scolding in his icy tone…

"You might want to be a bit more cautious if you value your soul! Don't you understand—if your soul fuses with your material form, you will rot with it…! Your body will decompose and as will your soul, and once there is nothing left to decompose, your soul will not ever be in existence…!"

"I want to go back…!"

"You can't go back—there is no other way…!" He snapped at her.

"Please Hortus—I just want to be back with my family again…!"

He sighed… "There is… no other… way. This is the way you came, and this is the way you will go. Come along now."

"Hortus…!" Eve cried, not yet fully awakened to the darkness that surrounded her.

"Come, come child… There is much we are yet to do, and standing here dawdling all day is wasting my time…" Hortus replied, slowly taking foot and walking away.

"Y… You bastard…!!" She screamed, fuming.

Hortus paused, and gave a sigh, "I wouldn't, if I were you…"

Eve screamed, charging at him with full force. She raked his back with her claws, tearing through his cream suit, shirt, and deep into his flesh. Several more times she attacked him—blood dripping and spilling from him in a most unrealistic manner until she knocked his head off from his shoulders. She stared in horror of what she had done, but in grim satisfaction that she had defeated her opponent.

"Your ways are so unpolished my dear… Really, they are…" Hortus stood, not twenty feet away from her, his back turned to her. She looked at him, then back at the collapsed form of the body she had slain. It turned into a series of bats, all with which disappeared into the void, shrieking screams following in their wake. She made another charge at him, wishing she could have had a sword to swing at him with. As though by demonic magic, a sword did indeed appear in her hands, and cleanly cleaved him down, from shoulder down to torso in a diagonal fashion. Slowly, Hortus' upper half began to slide down the curvature of his sliced body, his posture still remaining motionless. A sudden rage filled her, and Eve proceeded to swing the sword once again, cutting off Hortus' head cleanly. The head flew and spinned wildly until it crashed onto the ground in a blood-splattering heap. Despite this, however, Hortus wasn't dead… She knew that from her gut feeling inside of her… Hortus was too… unreal…

"Far from unreal, my dear—I am alive and well—look behind you."

She spun to turn about-face, only to find herself facing an upside down Hortus sitting on what appeared to be nothingness. He looked up from his book or, rather, "down" to look at her, before giving a sigh. He put away his book and, leaping back to his feet, landed upside right to stand next to her.

"…Having fun?" He smirked. The blade suddenly disappeared before he reappeared right beside her.

She gritted her teeth as her face turned a beet red in tone. Her mind told her she was pissed, and she knew that, from her core of self-being, that she hated him… with all her soul, and with all her spiritual heart…

"Your anger is nothing uncommon… Others who have come here would have been doing the same thing over and over again, but sooner or later their fate would conspire and lead them to their ultimate doom, and they eventually surrender themselves to me…"

"I sure wish I could have fun… Anything would be a hell of a lot better than being with you..."

He appeared over her left shoulder suddenly, and pointed, "…Actually, I've had quite enough fun already. I was hoping that we could maybe move on a little to the left there, where we could finally get going…"

Having said, he walked on by her, and continued in the general direction.

"Y… You're just… sick…! You know that!?"

""Oh please, dear—I've heard enough of your angst already, and it's far too early in the day for anything of the sort…"

"What do you want from me!?"

"Believe me, girl—I've already got what I wanted."

"And that was?"

"To have you here—trapped in this little world of nothingness, with no intent of you ever going back."

"Bring me back, now!"

"Bring yourself back, if you so choose… I only tried to help you…"

"Y… You didn't help me! You killed me, you mother fucker!!"

"…Which leads you to the reason you fell to your own demise… You allowed yourself to die, don't forget."

He only kept on walking…

She coughed, amazed at his impudence and disgusted as his gentleman-like manners. She then turned and headed back for her body, intent on going back home.

Hortus paused, then gave another sigh before reappearing in front of her, blocking her with both arms.

"Hortus, move!!"

"I'm telling you dear—your soul will begin to rot if you return back to your old shell… It's best that we do not think about these things and move along now…"

"Go… fuck yourself or whatever…" Eve growled as she pushed herself past him. Again, she entered into her body, and tried to fight away the screaming and numbing cold from around her.

The EMT's had already done everything in their power to bring Eve back to life… She was already pronounced dead on arrival, but certain measures had to be taken to make sure and— above all—that the medics "didn't try to bring her back." Eve was hooked up and receiving blood while sensors did their best to detect any brain action. The defilberators had done little to bring anything more than a single heart beat before the heart would lay at rest again.

However, just as the team was about to call the operation quits, a small significant form of life halted the end of their rescue mission. It wasn't too much out of the ordinary—the heart was beating a few times… But, then the heart would beat again… and again… and again… A little brain activity showed, which raised an eyebrow to each of the men attending her. It seemed to be well worth the extra few minutes if they could reach one of their superiors to determine what would be the next best possible decision. Was this worth it, or should she be taken off the life support…?

Hortus gave a groan, and rubbed his glasses with a handkerchief he held in his pocket, and cleaned his lenses. Placing them back on his eyes, he then turned around and pulled Eve back out from her body, and prepared to give her a lecture.

"…Alright, listen. You're dead. Got it? No more of this "I'm going back home now" business, because it's not going to work. You'll only stay here in this state while your real body rots in the material world. Even if you so wish to go back, there is no going back, otherwise hundreds of others would have gone long ago. I'll cut you a deal, and I'm going to make it short. I've got a short temper with you young girl, and I'm not about to let it go before giving you a chance first…!

"Keep your material form alive as much as you want, but it won't do you any good. In fact, you can keep it. Here!" In a sudden flash of light, Eve's body condensed in size to become enwrapped in a heart-shaped crystal… The crystal itself shrunk, becoming small and smaller and smaller, until finally becoming nothing more but a jewel. Hortus then produced a chain and locket, with which he placed the jewel inside of. He closed the locket, then tossed the necklace over to Eve.

"Inside, you'll find your pathetic little body, but it won't do you any good… In fact, you'll find that it is rather a nuisance to carry around, and I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if you dropped it or forgot it somewhere. Open and look at it to your heart's content…!"

Eve did as she was bid, and opened the locket in front of her. There before her sat the girl in the shape of herself, surrounded in crystal and preserved in her natural form the way she looked only a few moments ago before she was pulled back out. The necklace magically tied itself about her neck, and adjusted to her correct size by means of Hortus' dark magic. She touched her crystallized self, feeling sorrowful that the form she was viewing was only a shadow of her former life… The beautiful girl with the long nutmeg brown hair, and plain slate-grey eyes… The girl who would never look pretty to anyone… Now she truly was no one… A yearbook photo… trapped in a tiny locket…

Hortus then appeared before her, his dark hollow voice growling at her in anger. "Now… Life doesn't give out any freebies, or so your old man said… I have a delivery to make of you—something I'm not even supposed to do… Still, by will of Satan the Devil himself, I must bring you to the world you are bound to… Come along, now…"

"Where are you taking me to…? Purgatory…?" Eve whimpered quietly.

"Purgatory is only for those who are neonates, deprived of life before even given much of a chance… Their world lies neither in Heaven nor Hell. Your world is one much different… No, my dear—you are bound for Limbo…!"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

The darkness itself knew no bounds… Further onwards, deeper into the planet—the long and twisted path snaked its way through the void surrounding Eve as Hortus led her further. Eve had no idea of the place where she was going, other than that Hortus called it Limbo—whatever he meant by that. Eve had only played limbo a few times with friends at a party whenever there was a big get-together or a party. She wasn't really good at it—she'd often slip and fall once the bar was lowered anywhere beyond the third level. But she doubted that he was taking her to a limbo game…

The walls, if they were to even be called walls, were rounded much like a worm's tunnel. The light being given off by some foreign source illuminated the curves and edges, creating a sort of eerie glow to them, while shadows danced and reflected off the symmetrical walls. It only seemed to go on further and further… Eve began to wonder to herself how long it was that she had been in here. An hour...? Two hours…? Three hours…? Four…? Time seemed to sit still in the land of the dead, and while clocks ticked in the real world, there was no sun or stars to mark the passing of time… Just darkness, worm tunnels, and an awful ghastly glow leading her on further…

It was at one point that Eve stopped in her tracks completely, not moving another inch. Hortus, noticing her pause in step, also stopped to glance behind at her.

"Come along, girl… Limbo is waiting…"

"How much further?" She asked, a bit of dead added to her tone.

"Time does not pass when you are between worlds… It's only been about two hours since you died, and you've only been here for a while…"

"How long, may I ask?" She felt hopeless.

"Hmm…" Hortus scratched his chin. "Well, for mortals and those doomed to die, maybe only I'd say, hmmmmm… Ten or twelve minutes."

"Ten or twelve minutes!?" Eve exclaimed. "No way—there is no way that I've been down here for only ten or twelve minutes!"

"There is no time here with us between the realms… You need to pass from one world to the next to feel the passing of time again. Life is on pause and changes need mending… For you, it would be the transition of the empty void to the land down below."

"But… Time DID pass in the void…! I felt it, I—"

"—That was because you were alive at the time. Now that you are dead, time refuses to pass at the rate it did in the world above."

"…But, time is still passing, right? You just said we were here for maybe ten or twelve minutes."

Hortus gave a sigh, "It only SEEMS like ten or twelve minutes, because you ASKED me how long it's been. Trust me—we have only been down here for ten or twelve minutes. I can give you my word…"

"Huh… Yeah, right… Last time you gave me your word, you killed me and brought me here instead of letting me speak to my mother… I'm still pissed at you for that…"

"It was your fault for trusting the words of a demon… I only do what I am supposed to do."

"…And that is?"

"Deceive the innocent and lead them straight to hell."

"You are one sick sonnavabitch…"

"Quite the contrary—I have no mother."

"Ugh…! Go fuck yourself." Eve growled. He was starting to get on her nerves again.

Hortus waited a while, then began to proceed onwards. "…Right. Well, we best be moving on, then. If I let you wander about for too long, you'll have a devil of a time finding your way down to Limbo… You should be grateful I'm even taking the time to tell you any of this and for showing you the way…"

There was that stupid elegance to his voice… It made her sick. She growled and grumbled for a bit before taking off to follow him again… Since the change from her normal state into this darkened form, she had started to notice that the rings around her body did not heal up the way scars normally did. Nor did her skin vary much from its original state, but rather became a subtle brown tint, much like a Native American. Still, her eyes remained slate, although she couldn't even see them. They could be black, for all she knew. But, with nothing to use to examine her face, she was, alas, at a loss.

The endlessness of the tunnels seemed to continue, and Eve started to grow impatient again. Rather than bother asking him again, she posed a different question.

"Hortus…?"

"Yes, my uncouth youth?"

She felt herself steam at those words…

"What… what are… I mean… What… What exactly are these tunnels for? Or, who made them, I guess is what I mean…"

"These tunnels lead straight to Limbo, and onward to Hell, my dear…"

"But… who made them?"

"Why, no one did. They've always been here."

"Really…?" Eve blinked and frowned.

"…Well, saying that would only piss you further, so what I should be saying is that they have been here long since before I came around."

"…When did you come about, Hortus?"

"That is not for you to know…" Hortus growled. Eve took the hint and shrugged to herself.

"Okay, then… touchy-touchy… Never knew a demon could be so fussy…"  
The two continued down the tunnel for a time further, until finally arriving at a dead end. Hortus sighed and proclaimed proudly.

"Well, here you are my dear… This is it—the gateway to Limbo…"

"…A rock wall?" Eve was not at all impressed.

"You wouldn't be saying that if you really knew what lies beyond that wall…" He warned.

Eve snorted, "Another trap to another one of your damn blasted plans…! I hate it here, Hortus—I hate it. Why don't you just get it over with and—"

"Don't say it—don't say it…" Hortus stopped her. "By saying such things, you would agree to the terms in which you say. Here in the afterlife, there is no forgiveness by saying simple things. You cannot lie to trick the Almighty—he is listening to every word that you are saying."

Eve stood, dumbfounded and staring at him. She blinked a few times in consideration of what he said, repeating it over to herself. She cleared her throat and spoke again, "So… … … what you're saying is, if I were to ask you to—"

"Taking your soul is one of my missions. However, since you can't belong to Satan until you submit yourself to him, you do not belong to him. The same goes with the Almighty Father Himself. He has cast you out of the Heavenly realm, and sent you away from the world above to live a life below the Heavenly surface."

Eve blushed, feeling herself start to burn up inside with guilt. The thought of dying was bad enough. Being sent out and away from Heaven because she displeased the Holy Father was even worse. She began to look a little worried… Hortus showed no compassion.

"You belong to no one… You are now one of the Lost Souls—realm-less entities who embody the world beneath the earth's surface… Neither Heaven nor Hell has accepted you, but you have no choice but to remain in Limbo or descend further into the world below… There is no hope for you now…"

Hortus pressed his hand against the rock wall, a mysterious energy flowing from inside of him. The energy caused the wall to twist and melt—like hot syrup in a mixing bowl, and morphed into shape. Before him stood a mysterious portal where a vast space of infinite did lay, or lie… The sounds of a thousand winds echoing through the hollow chambers of a darkened cave resounded in her ears, and a certain chill was felt, giving her goose bumps. She felt sick to her stomach, like the thrill of going over a hill on a rollercoaster… Hortus motioned her in.

"Go now… Into the world of your future…"  
Eve hesitated, not wanting to move for fear had frozen her in her tracks. The portal, like a vacuum, had started to pull on her, dragging her in inch by inch… She tried to resist, but the strength of the portal was more than a fight for her… She gasped, trying to pull back, only to find her feet slipping… Her feet were slipping…! No matter what she tried, the force of the portal's pull remained too strong for her to resist and avoid. Her fate into the portal was inevitable…

Hortus's shades flickered a ghastly glow… His hollow, lifeless, soul-less shell cast a luminous shadow over her as she passed by him towards the portal. His empty words echoed in the tunnel, "Go…"

"Hortus…! Hortus!!" Eve yelled, reaching out to grab him. He withdrew, stepping back only far enough to be out of her reach. His cold, lifeless stare watched her pass on by—now only moments before the portal engulfed her…

"Your fate, it is… inevitable…!" He spoke with a sense of satisfaction, "Soon one day, your soul will belong to me…!"

Panic, rage, sorrow, and fear coursed through her veins as she screamed, "HORTUS!! Please Hortus—help me, please…!"

Eve reached out a desperate hand in a last plea for help, reaching for Hortus.  
Hortus's hand shot out, a sudden feel of deathly cold rooting through her arteries, and into the depths of her soul, binding her for only a moment in his lifeless grip. "…But for now—it is you that your soul belongs to! Let now be the time that the portal engulfs you!!"

His foot rose out, slowly rising to knee level as he made his aim… Eve's eyes shot wide with terror as the moments' events passed by her in slow-motion… His hideous face formed the frightening form of the soul-stealer, and cackled maniacally... The heel of his foot crushed her abdomen, thrusting her backwards while his hand let go… Eve felt the wind knocked out of her as she saw him slowly drawing backwards into the distance… The portal took her in, surrounding her in a nebula of swirling dark matter…

The door to the tunnel remained open—the light shining on that damned demon as his laughter echoed throughout time and space… She could hear him laughing… She could hear him shrieking… She could feel her soul shred into a thousand shards, like a bed sheet through a propeller… Farther and farther… further and further… distance by distance… emptiness, and then…

Void…

***

Silence…

It

was ut—

Utterly silent

Silent…

it was like—

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF—"

—being asleep again… only now…

"AAACK!!!"

it's just that it's like being asleep again… only this time, you can't wake up—

"WHERE DID TH—"

"I DON'T KNOW—WHY ARE YOU AS—"

Aaah…!! It hurts…!

"_For three days, her soul has been—"_

Hor—

"…to the _Wake with your father… _I've heard enough of your angst already!!"

Hortu—

"You killed me, you mother fucker!!"

Hortus… Hortus… Hortus…

I can see him… Business suit and… tie…

"_Eve, my powers are far more powerful than any material force… It is beyond anything that this world has known… Past the knowledge that is E.S.P… With it, I can talk with the dead… bring back forgotten memories…change the way things were meant to be… "_

Rage... Raging…! Kill… Want to… kill him…! That… damn… mother fu—

"AAUUUGHHHHH!!!"

—cker! I hate him! I hate it! I hate it!!

…_With a thousand droplets of blood so red… crimson… scarlet… like a hot death… penetration through the skin with a clean scalpel…_

"HOLY SHI—!!!!!"

_She died without a trace… No evidence leaving behind her desecrated remains…To be doomed before she even started… _

"I WAS JUST…?!"

_Robust and sturdy! Life will treat you good… Broken charms and mixed memories… the_

_CHAIN_

_is unlinking…_

_Tzjuk… Tzjuk… _

"BUT WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?! THAT WORD—"

Death! Suddenly, grim reaper appearing! His bony fingers and hand—HE'S COMING!!

Fear…

A black and brown shanty wall…

Why not yellow?

… … … …

… …

…

A ringing… bells…

"_Phone~!!! Come on—won't somebody answer it…?!"_

…Would anyone ever answer it…?

-----------------------------

For you, I would give everything…

In you, I want to become your anything…

Your hopes…

Your dreams…

Your wanted desires…

Your heart…

Your love…

I want to become anything and everything you ever knew…

Anything that you ever thought…

Nothing of which you have ever heard of…

These are my thoughts…

These are my hopes…

My dreams…

Scattered memories of a time forgotten,

To become so forlorn without means of eminence…

I am You…

I am anything…

I am that with which has been forgotten…

I am…

You…

***

He was a sad boy, one without much more than to call himself what he was: a lad of perhaps seventeen years of age. One without a name to be called by… Others named him Marcum—a boy with hound ears and tail, both of which were black as soot… His eyes were a pale green in color—a dark steel grey rim around the edges where his irises met the whites of his eyes. He had a strong chin, and a good, lean build to him. There had been a time when he was meant to be the son of a great warrior… but that was all before it had happened… It didn't matter to him now—those days were far gone and off into times he didn't even care about. Where he was and how he got there—he did not know for sure… Only time would tell when and if he would ever be leaving here…

The queer lad had built himself a shack towards the edge of a small forest. From here, the endless prairie of the underworld expanded itself far beyond the line of vision, to where it seemed to go on endlessly into the horizon… The grasses hissed with each passing breeze of the late summer sun, with a glow to it that echoed eerily memories of a time that had long since been forgotten… Seasons would come and go, but life was always the same—plants would grow in places they had been, clouds would still bring rain and thunderstorms, and a hot August would bring with it the dry dust gathered from the loose earth to create dust devils and wind storms. The world was much like it was while he had still been living, save for a few minor exceptions… One of which, he knew, dealt with his body. His arm, he knew, had always had terrible luck—scratches and cuts numbered themselves well into the dozens as they crawled up his arm, from wrist to shoulder. Here, those sorts of things handled themselves in a completely unique and odd way. A scratch would scab and heal, but the recovery rate was remarkable. The wound would close up in minutes, scabbing and sealing up the gash where the wound infested itself, and quickly return itself into living, breathing flesh, leaving no trace behind of its existence. How and why it could happen was unexplainable. Only the mystery of the wound's incredible disappearance was what ever remained of any of the scar…

For years he lived here, or for what had seemed like years… He never really knew, nor did he keep track. For him, the seasons here seemed to move too fast… Days changed into weeks on a regular basis, but why it would get colder quicker, change into Winter, then back into Spring—he did not know… Hunters and explorers back in the realm of the living would tell of shorter days and longer nights as they would return from their voyages from up north, telling their stories around the campfire late at night while helping themselves to their fair share of the kill… But regardless of that, why such things would be happening in this world was a completely different matter. But he didn't care—those days were gone now, and these days had just begun…

All alone in his hut, needing nothing more than the sustenance which would keep him going—a bit of meat, water, and the plants that grew around here. The vegetation was mostly grasses and herbs, resembling the sorts of things the hunters spoke of, but they lacked life as this place lacked the will to live… It was a large waiting room, waiting for something to happen that never did happen or, if it would happen, hadn't happened yet… It was frustrating to live in a world with no end… That seemed that it had no end…

At least in such a place, a day without eating wasn't nearly as bad as it used to be. He could remember how his stomach used to ache, how his mind used to drift, how his senses began to lose all feeling… It was a strange thing, but he knew it was only his body beckoning for the sustenance which gave him life—it was a natural thing for one's body to want and desire nourishment. Now, that feeling was gone, and he was left with only the desire to want to eat. He was left with the want to eat, but his stomach wasn't. His stomach had no care in the world if it should have food to digest or not. The stomach would only resume its usual functions when there was food, and the body would continuously survive on a mysterious life force that kept it from dying. But, try as he may, he still kept a regular basis of caring for his body, regardless of how it regenerated itself and self-nourished itself. It was a seemingly outré place—this… land beneath the surface…

It was a sunny afternoon; the clouds were graying and starting to show signs of dark as they normally did when day would turn to night. The skies were of a marmalade orange, with white streaks of clouds touching the otherwise perfect canvass. The air was still warm and dry, bringing with it the comfort of a natural evening sun. The day had been hot, and the steaming heat still found itself waving off of the prairie land like that of a ghostly phantom. Off in the distance, a crow cawed, but only for a time. It seemed that this day would surely end, as did all other days. Today, as it had been for all other times in infinity, was just another day.

He sat casually on his makeshift chair of bent yews and tied pieces of wood. It appeared as though he was going to have to get himself something to eat this evening. The fire had burned itself low—the remaining ashes had turned grey like pastels and left an undesirable odor. His feet were propped up on that of a stump, one of which he had found in the woods during one of his travels. Often times, he used it to eat off of, while others he cut wood for the fire, thus becoming his cutting stump. On other days, it served as his miniature table to eat off of, although mostly he used his hands. He needed no surface to eat off of—the spit that would harness his kill was more than sufficient for its purpose. The table would only serve as a surface only if the food should be too hot—rarely an occurrence as it never really ever happened. Arms bent behind him and his eyes closed close to slits, he relaxed himself. No shirt did he wear, as he was not accustomed to such fabrication of his body. Only a pair of shorts, which came to just above his ankles. Capris, they were sometimes called in the world above him, or "tzjuk," "coverings" in his native tongue. The shorts were designed only to protect the genital area while out in the hunt. Branches, trees, or even beasts posed a threat, thus the reason for their importance. He was fast—the tribesmen all knew that. That was the main reason he was sent out to take down the kill when the hunters were in pursuit. The tribe otherwise had no reason for clothing, so nudity was a commonplace.

His cheeks were detailed with a series of tattoos, flowing in various intricately curling patterns. They resembled the movement of smoke, or a twisting vine of some sort. The tattoos curled down the sides of his face, sometimes breaking off into smaller flame-like spreads off the ends of the curls. They continued onwards further to the start of his chest, detailing his masculine chest and good muscle tone, while the rest ended at his forearms. They were the markings of a warrior—ones of which he earned for his dedication to the tribe he once belonged to. One marking belonged to that of his father—it was the symbol of his family, while another belonged to his tribe. Together, they formed his identity, to which they called him Hyzak, or "Crowned Slaying Stone." …But that was back while he was still living. For now, these tattoos served as nothing more but of details of his skin, as other creatures around him had.

He sat thinking of nothing, and keeping his thoughts open. To keep one's mind open was to allow things around them drift in and out, like water through an underground tunnel. Thoughts of dinner had long since escaped his mind—he was now in a world of complete and utter silence… He was listening to the earth; listening to the trees and the wind, listening to the world around him… The air was warm and dry, crying for the summer's rain… The crow had stopped its cawing—something had gone amiss… The deep feeling of a storm was in the air… Further still—the grasses lay about idly, doing nothing except hissing in the late summer breeze… There was a feeling of something anew… There was a feeling off in the distance… Something… was coming…

His eyes shot open, and he leapt to his feet, drawing his wooden staff from beside him as he went. Off we went, dashing into the prairie in search of his target. The grasses hissed loudly as he ran through—rippling behind him before slowly wisping back into their original state. His great chest heaved inwards and out, taking in great breathes to sustain its host as he ran, with the physique of a wolf. He was running—quickly moving towards his destination. The wind blew into his face, urging him to hold back from running so fast. He knew why he was running—he knew where he was running to… But what was he running to…? He briefly halted his search, stopping to look around him. Far as the eye could see, the prairie seemed to run endlessly; for miles, it stretched until it was halted by the forest covering the horizon. To the north, the great stretch of mountains went on for miles and miles. Everything in between was prairie—nothing more than prairie land, and nothing out of the ordinary…

A flash!

An instant!

He saw it—there! From the sky—it was coming!

Above him could be made the distinct figure of something humanoid like himself, falling, falling, falling…

He dashed forth with his staff, rushing to greet the figure as it made its fall from the sky. From out of its "body," a gleam of light escaped before trickling off upwards towards the heavens to become lost from sight. It was a race against time—would he make it…?

_Low, pressing, least air resistance stance—dash_!

He grazed the tips of the prairie—the tall grasses hardly having any time to bow down before he raced by them. The figure was falling lower now—lower and lower, closer and closer. He could almost make it, if he were just a bit faster… He applied himself, pressing all his might into speed that he might reach his target. The figure was above him now… He held out his arms, tripping over his other foot…

The figure fell into his arms, halted by the fall… Having caught what he had been running for, he proceeded to crash onto the ground with his fallen catch. Atop of the other he lay only momentarily, before slowly pulling himself up. He panted as he elevated himself off of the ground to see what it was he had caught, the wind brushing through his black spiked hair… A girl… A female of some sort—with long, round and cupped ears, a black-tipped nose, and a bushy tail following behind her… She looked as though she had been wearing a dress at some point, although that would have been long ago… Tattered and torn, the dress only came down to about mid-thigh length, the rest having been torn off by something. Her outfit was in tatters, her left breast looking as though it had been sliced through with a knife… Blood soaked her clothes, and she smelled fresh—a newly-dead… She couldn't have died any more than a couple of hours ago... Yet, how long would it take for her to come through…?

He stared at her for a while… Her skin was once brown—from that, he could tell. Under the black tone, the fur beneath held a bit of brown. Large cinnabar and yellow rings scarred her forehead and ears, two alongside her forearm, one about the midsection of her tail, and one on either side of her thighs. She must have been a knife and burn victim, from what he figured… although; there was no smell of smoke… So then, what was she…? Most beautiful, from what he could tell… He wondered how long it would be before her skin recovered back to its normal state…?

He patted her face in an effort to revive her. No response… It didn't even appear as though she was even breathing… He blinked, and then patted her face again. Nothing… Still panting, he lay there clueless as to what to do next… He slumped back to his seat, and recovered from his mad dash. She had to be okay—he had caught her while she was falling. He didn't understand why she wasn't awakening... It then came to mind—an idea that brought hope. Ripping through her dress, he removed the article of clothing from around her breasts to allow a clear place his head could rest upon, and listened intently. No sound… No heartbeat… He frowned, and sighed… He hoped she wasn't another one of the Still victims… The Stills were those who hadn't given up on life yet, but whose bodies had accepted death and had descended into the world below. They would always remain that way, until their other soul-half had come to be with their soul bodies.

He lay there for a time, and then shook his head. Gathering his staff, he knew that there was nothing he could do. Nothing could be done to reanimate a Still—they would always remain that way, as long as their soul-half was absent… Always… Gathering his things, he gave the body one last glance before packing up to return back to his camp. He then turned and began his trek back to his hut. There was no doubt about it—regardless of what had happened to her, she was indeed very beautiful, and had captured his heart. She appeared as though she took very good care of herself, with smooth facial features, well-kept hair, and an otherwise pleasing aroma despite her bloody appearance. His only wish was that he would have gotten to meet her… Chances were that Stills like her were vain, only caring about their outward appearances and not wanting to leave them behind. He knew what vain was, and what vain meant… It just pitied him to see such a thing happen…

His ears were erect… A sound…

A

Sound…?

Quickly, he turned back towards the body… From the heavens, a small twinkling light came down from above. It was that sparkle, which disappeared shortly after she had arrived. The gleam was consumed by the body, and the corpse seemingly emanated for only a moment before the glowing light faded back into nothing... That gleam meant… …

He dashed back to the body, down on his hands and knees again, drawing close to the face. He paused, and then listened for a heartbeat… There came a faint murmur, which drew out his excitement. She was alive—she was alive…! Or, rather—she could be. He still had to find out whether or not her soul had returned to its soul body. He waited with baited breath, waiting to see if this victim would arise again as so many others had in this world… There came a groan from her lips, followed by a cough. He crawled over her body, patting her face a few times with his bandaged hand, whispering coarsely,

"You… Are you alright…?"

The body groaned again, and the girl lay there. She gave a deep gasp—her jaw dropped down to engulf the healthy air of the world around her. He watched intently. The large, over-exaggerated gasp was always the first part of the resurrection process. That first breath was what permanently linked the soul to the afterlife. Without it, the body would remain motionless without its first breath of life…

Her eyes flickered before slowly opening… Slate-like eyes, clouded over at first, slowly began to take into shape and focus on the world around her as she slowly came back into consciousness… The figure of the boy over top of her frightened her, and she gasped, crawling backwards to try and escape from his clutches.

"No… No—please…! Don't run…" He winced, trying to reassure her of her safety with him.

Reassurance…?! Most definitely not! What was this guy?! He had the picture of a human-like demon—err, no… a demon-like human with… with… What were those—those wolf ears…? She grasped her chest to hold herself from fright, whimpering as she realized her futile position… But… when she did… …

She felt her chest again, her hand sliding across where the fabric once covered her body. She looked down and, seeing her naked breast, screamed before covering herself with what remained of her dress. The boy, discouraged, offered a hand to calm her down. He did not understand the reason for her fright, or why she was so concerned about her tzjuk. She turned her eyes venomously to him and snarled.

"Get away from me, you creep! What do I look like to you, a harlot!?"

His ears bent back and he winced, backing away from her. He held his rod down low, placing his other hand on the earth in a respectable manner, "I am sorry, I… I didn't mean to frighten or offend you."

"Frighten me?! What! So you… you…?" She glanced at the rest of her dress, and gave a cry before falling into a pitiful crying slump.

"My dress!! You ripped apart my dress…!"

"I could help you… Maybe there's a chance I could assist you in making another…?"

"This dress I got from my mother…! She's gone now—It's the only thing left of her I have! How could you do such a thing?"

She was obviously distressed. There was little he could do to an overly distressed woman, let alone her clothes… After all, his father did tell him he wasn't as courteous with women as he could or should be…

"I'm sorry… Please accept my apologies—I was only trying to save your life."

"What…?" She looked at him. She was confused, angered, and distressed—could her day get any worse…?

"You were lying there, and you weren't breathing… I did my best to try and wake you, but to no result… You were not breathing, and your heart wasn't beating. I pat your face a few times before listening for your heart. Your dress was soaked in blood, so I had to remove it to see if I could hear your heart beating."

"Blood…? Wait, what…?" She felt her dress, and noticed it was damp. Her fingers were red, and smelled of iron. Her dress was indeed wet with blood. How it got there was yet another mystery.

"Oh my goh…!" Her whimpering voice quivered in utmost fear.

"It's alright—it's not what you think… I've got a lot to explain here, and it's important that you listen."

She looked at him in fright… What was he going to do—kill her…?! The look on his face was quite desperate, and for some reason she felt as though she couldn't trust him…

_Boom…_

There came a loud, thunderous noise, like a peal of thunder… Its tremendous force caused the earth and air around the two to shake, sending its waves of sonic boom off into the distance. The tall heads of the grasses in the prairie bent down low to the ground, hugging the earth for what it was worth. There came no noise whatsoever, no wind or breeze, or bird or tree, just unearthly silence…

Eve gasped, looking up at the sky and around her bewilderedly, searching for the source of the noise. The vacancy of the evening air meant nothing in comparison to the sound that she heard. She quickly turned her attention back to the boy, her voice shaking as she spoke, "What the hell was that…?!"

The boy held a look of mystification in his eyes, equally as dumbfounded and frightened. He kept his voice down, crouching low to whisper to her, "Stay here, and lay close to the ground…"

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this…?!" Eve whimpered. The boy closed his eyes and gave a sigh, moving slowly through the tall grass. He crawled along the ground on all fours, his small stub of a tail sticking out from the edge of his capris. His ears were fully erect, and his eyes and ears open for sound as he moved along and away from Eve. With the rod in his hand, he focused his mind ahead and slowly rose to his feet. Eve blushed--she hated the fact that she was doing it under such frightening circumstances, but she couldn't help noticing that the boy had a cute butt.

The boy stood, eyes watching ahead of him very carefully. There was something in the air that he did not like—something he knew that did indeed intend them harm… He curled his lip, and his fangs glistened, while slits covered much of his eyes. He stood completely still--his body stiff and petrified, tense and unmoving like a statue… There was a heavy feeling in the air, like something was smothering both of them… Eve felt it… She had never felt so scared in her life…

It all happened way too quickly!!

"GET DOWN!!"

_CRASH!!!_

Eve felt herself thrown from her position to be tossed up into the air for a few seconds. She became weightless, and felt the sickening feeling of butterflies in her stomach as the earth spun and whirled about her madly. She hit the ground, smashing her right elbow hard against the firm and dry earth, and rolled in pain. She screamed, clutching her arm after having heard a snap upon impact. Her eyes opened slowly, and gazed upon the horrific glory of a monster greater than anything she had ever seen in her life…

The monster appeared ten times the size of an elephant, the colossal being towered over her and the boy, dwarfing them in size comparison. Much like a bug, the creature possessed twelve legs, branching from an abdomen at least the size of a coach bus… Its legs and joints were plated with what appeared to be a thick and heavy shell, and its back was covered in thousands of deadly looking spines… Two large pincher-like pedipalps assisted the monster in its torrential destruction as it sliced at the earth before it, giving an immortal roar, shattering the hearing space with the depth of a sonic boom… Marcum braced himself, drawing his rod in hand before confronting the foe. Three large compound eyes, comprising of thousands of yellow, red, and black simpler eyes gazed about the prairie landscape, seeking out more things to wreck destruction upon.

Marcum took a chance, and advanced quickly towards the raging beast. The monster swung one of its giant claws at him, but found only the dirt to greet its claws upon impact. Marcum took advantage of the situation to leap onto one of the larger claws. The rough and grasping texture of the claws made it easy to keep a hold onto, and Marcum was able to keep his footing. Securing his rod in a sheath on his back, he dropped on to all fours, clinging on to the claw and slowly advancing his way upwards. The creature, having taken little next to no attention of him, only continued to roar, smashing the ground with his claws and uprooting much of the earth.

Eve backed away in horror as she watched the oversized arthropod make short use of a tree not too far away. The mantis-like insectoid used its claws to grip the tree, crushing it under heavy pressure. The tree cracked and splintered under the force, shedding its bark and leaves as a reaction to the power of its might. The tree, not used to having ever undergo this much stress, held tightly to the earth with the refusal not to let go. However, the might of the creature was phenomenal—thoroughly pulling the tree out of the ground like a weed from a garden. The insect gave another roar before throwing the tree in Eve's direction. She gave a horrified scream, turning over to jump up on her feet and make a mad dash in the opposite direction.

"No!! I told you not to move!!" Marcum hollered in her direction, but to no avail—she could not hear him above the noise and the wreckage. From his vantage point up high on the creature's shoulder, he could see a long ways down the figure of the girl running off in the opposite direction. The creature cocked its head in her direction and gave another roar—its voice somewhere between that of a horrendous nocturnal insect and a dying dragon. He winced—the alien creature had spotted her, and was now going to be off to finish the kill.

"Dammit girl… Can't stand still, can you?" He muttered under his breath before taking action. Quickly, he hoisted himself up upon the back of the towering monster, landing at the connecting joint between one of the claws and the body. The top of the beast was just as disgusting as it was hairy. Like a porcupine, long, quill-like spines jutted out a good six feet out from its back, and were littered with thousands of furry hairs in between. What truly made the creature a horrid sight were the parasites growing on the back of the monster. Large, overgrown mite-like insectoids infested themselves everywhere, devouring the larger beast while it was destroying and devouring the landscape. The creature was turning its body now, and shifting its attention to the young girl who lay on the earth, stumbling after another fall. Marcum held on to one of the needles in order to keep his balance—the shift of the monster almost knocking him over. Eve screamed, and backed away on her back in an attempt to run from the thing.

Marcum shouted, "Hold on! I'll take care of you!!" Reaching towards the spine he used to gain himself balance, Marcum attempted to snap off a piece to use as a weapon. No matter how hard he bent the spine would not move, bend, or break. Suddenly, the spines started to shake and rattle rapidly, the individual spines and hairs alive and ready with motion. The overgrown mites clung on to their host for safety while Marcum found himself caught in a wily state of affairs. He quickly released the spine, only to find himself losing balance and falling forward. He gave a yell, trying to break his fall by latching on to one of the spines again. Bad idea! The spines shook his hands, breaking his hold and causing him to fall down into the spiky shambles. The spines jabbed at him, gouging holes in his flesh with their long, needle-like projections. His anguished yells did nothing to halt the beast or its shaking, and he was left for nothing. Gouge after gouge, rip after slice, Marcum felt his flesh ripping open, the seams of skin and fur that held his body together coming apart at the molecular level, and blood permeating his skin, and drenching the spikes with the blood of his youth. Stained with blood all over his chest, Marcum began to look like a pincushion punctured with all the holes all over his body.

Eve watched in horror as her attacker came closer, her breathing rapidly intensifying to a staggering rate. From above, she could see her rescuer attempting to hold himself up, while the blood seemed to drip from around him. A puncture—a slice!! His head shot straight up, while a long needle impaled his shoulder, only to come out his backside. She screamed and quivered in fright—the tears falling rapidly as she witnessed these frightful events happen before her eyes. It was a nightmare… It was happening all so fast—wasn't there anything that was going to be done…?!

Then, it

Happened…

It Came

From

OUT

Of his

Chest…

Eve felt sick, the oncoming of vomit in her mouth after witnessing another needle jutting itself through him and out through his chest… The boy was suffering—screaming in pain and torture… It was a terrible dream, right? She would wake up in a few moments, realizing it was all just a bad dream, right…? Right…?

The creature roared again, taking a slice at Eve with the razor sharp tips of its claws. The attack narrowly missed Eve, but trimmed the grasses around her. Eve's instincts told her to run, and run she did. Up on to her feet, she fought back tears as blood and tears soaked themselves in the torn bits of her dress—what was left of it at any rate… She felt the vomit coming on, but dared not to let it come for fear of losing her life. She ran—she ran harder and faster than she had ever known. The creature gave another roar, and began to take off after her, its large feet penetrating the ground and shaking it with seismic quakes.

The boy managed to pull himself free of the ruckus, the needle snapping after he fell forward. The needle still in his chest, he began to cough up blood, feeling the mortality of this world starting to set in again… Would it happen, though…? Like all the other times it did…? He doubted it—the needle was far too deep within him—a simple cut or scratch would heal, but gouges were of another—

!!!

"It… hurts…!"

He coughed… … … He coughed again… He attempted a gag, and then—

…

… …

The form of the young warrior slumped slowly down to the back of the monster, the look of death clearly in his eyes… It was obvious that it was over now—his mind could not think or possess any thought of its own… He was gone now, and he was dead…

The beast gave another shot at Eve, swooping down to decapitate her with a fell swoop. The swipe missed her fortunately, but not before knocking her clear over on to her front side. Her ankle twisted, and Eve felt a sharp pain stinging throughout her body. She screamed, and held on to her leg at the impact site of the accident. The pain numbed her entire body, and she felt as though she couldn't move. The mantis roared again, its thousands of eyes attempting to make a clear mental picture of the world around it. Where did its prey go? How could it have escaped its line of sight…?

Eve cried, and gagged. She caught her face falling earthward, and suspended her chest with her other hand. Then it came—OUT!!! A cough, a thrust—a depletion of the contents of her stomach. She gasped, trying to hold back the awful feeling, but…

—!!! Again!! It happened, again?! Out on to the grass—dripping, stinking, acidic and gross… Orange and yellows—hints of dark brown and red… She coughed and gagged again—AND AGAIN!! Ruthlessly, the stomach muscles churned and thrusted, forcing her into a position where she could no longer breathe, should she want to. She needed it. NEED IT!! She fought the tightening feeling of the acids closing her throat, and managed a gasping breath of life. Her stomach had settled, and her breathing had regulated itself again. Tears fell from her eyes, mixed with mucus from her nose and the phlegm from her throat. She sniffed, clearing her face as she attempted to make a recovery. The monster above her was still clueless as to where she went—roaring on a rampage was about all the primitive-minded destructive machine could do.

The pain in her foot did not seem to go away, but only heighten. She moaned and held her ankle—wishing that this could all be over now. She had thrown up. Wasn't this the ultimate punishment for her wrongs, and forgiveness to be given…? Hadn't she paid enough for her wrongs…? Was this all that there was left…?

The mantis, finally catching whiff of her scent, attempted a clumsy backing up in order to see the girl at its feet. Its mandibles brushed its jaws, cleaning them as it prepared for the kill… It reached out with both of its claws, encircling Eve in a deadly trap that would cleave her in half…

Eve cried, and gave a mournful sob, covering her eyes… Now she knew, for a fact, that this would be the end… That this would be where her troubles would finally stop bothering her anymore… Death, again, would be her "savior…" She wept, and held her face in both hands—the smell of vomit causing her face to wrench in disgust…

He coughed, then coughed again… A groan… … and…

He opened his eyes, squinting about him… Beside him lay the spike, which had driven itself into his chest, now beside him and out from him. He blinked, then gazed at his chest. Blood saturated his chest, but no wound was to be found…! He grabbed himself in several places, assuring that he was not hurt, then sprang to his feet. The mystery of this healing world had brought life back to him again, and had given him another chance. He glared at the mantis, and then reached down to pick up the spiky spine that lay at his feet. Quickly, he dashed, making his way up the side of the mantis's neck, and to the top of its skull. The exoskeleton of the beast made it very convenient to spot the weaker and flesher parts of the animal, and he knew just where to strike it… Giving a yell, he came down upon the first compound eye he encountered, driving the spine deep into the eye of the perpetrator responsible for his previous "death..."

Blood squirted from the giant's head, spurting out like a gashing throat wound. The insect's insidious grey/green blood oozed from the impact site, and drenched him down from head to toe in its hot, vile green liquid substance. The monster screeched and screamed loudly, flailing its pincers about wildly in pain and surprise. Marcum squeezed the spine, reinforcing his grip with the strength in the muscles of his arms and hands. He twisted the spine, the spine burrowing in deeper to the beast's skull, scratching and ripping its insides with unrivaled ruthlessness. Something cracked inside the skull, and he could only guess what it could have been. He forced the spike back up through the hole, attempting to wriggle free the weapon which could cleave flesh and bone of even its own creator. The spike was reluctant to be set free, but came out eventually with a few catches on the creature's interior. In a mad rage, he struck again, forcing the spike down into another compound eye several times in rapid succession, his yells angry and filled with hate. The monster's anguished cries echoed far across the horizon, pleading in fear of an inevitable death.

…But did he see it? No!

_Crack!!_

Marcum felt himself struck with Herculean strength, cracked hard across the backside before flying down off the mantis's head. It was a horrific fall, landing in a way he smashed at least two ribs, his left arm and shoulder. He could scarcely do more than gag, wincing in deep pain as he lay there. The mantis gave frightful sounding noises, slashing in front of its face to protect itself, should there be any more attacks upon it. Retreating back on its twelve legs, the mantis pulled away from both Eve and Marcum, and fled to the north, its great booming footsteps quaking underneath each step that the beast took. The silence began to return as the creature's sounding noises faded quietly into nothing in the now-late evening sun. The silence reigned as the grasses resumed their hissing, the now-late evening encompassing the quiet realm of the nonliving.

The two lay there, unmoving or doing much more than breathing. The hot summer day was now cooling down to what would be a cold and chilling night, the breeze gently blowing over the grassy heads. Eve shook, feeling cold as the breeze passed her by; her half-naked body in tatters of what it had been when she got there… The pain in her ankle prevented her from moving too much, and the broken bone in her arm kept her from reaching out any farther than beyond half an outstretched arm. The tears were gone—no more would she cry today… Not anymore did she want to live this day… She just wished that she could die—close her eyes and just… never wake up again… But she knew that she couldn't—her eyes would open up again, and she would awaken, just as she always did, just as she always had… But the boy, she wondered—was he alright…? It was amazing what all she had seen him do; what she had witnessed before her seemed to be like an extraordinary feat… She had to see if he was okay… Crawling and shuffling, she moved herself along pathetically, her ankle screaming with pain, and her arm's bone seemingly dislocated in its location, already swelling to be something much larger.

She arrived at his body, and pulled herself on top of his, panting after her painstaking efforts to reach him. She gazed at him with ardent affection, noticing every detail of his handsome face. His square jaw, strong and proud, delicately shaped to support a masculine structure, curved up to his nose—broad and straight, with intricate curvatures. His hair was wild and free, flowing like the wind, through a recondite series of branches and leaves of a tree to entangle themselves before being set free… appearing wispy and light, but feeling coarse and strong… He was very beautiful… She wondered if he would still be alive… That fall would have killed anyone, from the height he had taken… She could see his dislodged shoulder, how it had come out of its place and wrecked his collar bone, and took careful heed not to bump it or press into it. She gazed at him again momentarily, noticing the places where his body had taken the impact from the spines.

She wanted to cry, although she knew that she couldn't—the tears were all gone, and the pain of her own body outweighed any tears that would have wanted to have fallen regardless… She just wanted to touch him—to touch that beautiful face; to have at least known what he felt like—the one who had saved her life… Reaching out with a quivering bloody hand, she brushed the tips of her fingers under his chin, her gaze unchanging and unmoving from her undying affection… She pressed aside the hair covering his eyes to reveal strong, prominent eyebrows, which would have been very deep but animated had he been alive… She gave a sigh and felt her face wrinkle… No tears would come, but the emotion she felt was still there…

She didn't know how long she laid there—she didn't care, and would have laid there with him forever… Even if she had thought he was trying to do something to her, those thoughts were now long gone and nonexistent to her… He had proven that he meant her no harm—he had given his life to ensure her safety, and all she had ever done was fear and despise him… But now—she would lay here with him, and for eternity just lie here in his arms, in an unknown world, in an unknown place… She… would be with him…

***

It was early morning when she awoke. Skies were lightly cloudy, seemingly covering patches of the earth while the morning sun would filter on down through. A truly beautiful morning, it was—golden hued sun beams tickling the land below, and adding the value that only a precious metal would have otherwise held. Where she was, she did not know, aside from the fact she was… somewhere…

"Limbo…?" she whispered to herself as the events from the previous day began to recollect themselves inside her mind. She gasped and pulled herself to her knees, looking around her in a bewildered state. The pain in her arm increased dramatically, and caused her to cry out—clutching the broken bone that swelled itself inside of her arm. She whimpered, and glanced around at her surroundings. Surprisingly, the world appeared much different than it did the other day… She was no longer in that field where she had found herself… and where that hideous thing came crashing from out of nowhere to attack her… What was that thing, anyways? Where there was one, there was bound to be more, after all… The area around her seemed to hug the edge of a small but densely populated forest, where various coniferous pines and evergreens stood cluttered together amidst small branching trees of birch and an occasional elm. It seemed very much like a school trip she had gone on when she was younger, with her rat friend Katie. The two had gone camping just on the outskirts of town towards the edge of the forest. It wasn't a spectacular place, but it did offer a break away from the bustling city life they were used to. The thoughts of marshmallows, mosquitoes, and the onset of the incoming storm that happened the last day they were out there… They did indeed have so many adventures together that it was no wonder the two went out to do it again, only in more closed quarters and closer to home from then on out.

She took a glance around her, observing what she could of the mysterious settings. Below her, the earth seemed quite most, and her clothes were wet as if she had slept there all night… She checked her dress, and groaned in dismay—her dress still lay in tatters, ripped to shreds by that damned demon… Where in the world was he, anyways…? Would she ever see him again?

"If I did, then there would be hell to pay for it…" she grumbled to herself as she attempted to stand. She stood, and held on to a nearby tree for balance, her ankle giving out as she tried to regain her ability to walk. She moaned, and shook her head—things weren't going very well for her already… With this wound, this strange new world, and that damned giant insect flying about, she doubted if she would even make it through Limbo… and what a treat that would end up being…

…Speaking of which, where was that boy…? She saw him fall, and that fall would have easily killed anyone. …Well, dead, she knew of that. She knew he wouldn't be alive, but she at least wanted to know where he was so that she could thank him… Well, thank his corpse, if that didn't sound too macabre or anything… He was really cute too, and he seemed really nice from what she had met of him… It made her feel terrible, that she acted the way she did around him when he was only trying to help… He didn't mean her any harm—he was only trying to help her… and there she was, thinking he was trying to grope or molest her… She watched him fall—she watched him die, plummeting to his death with a gigantic hole in his shoulder, and it was all her fault… It was all… her… fault… She didn't want to let him go the night before—she held on to him… She held on—not ever wanting to let go… She fell asleep by his side, wanting to be there with him… but now, he was gone… Gone…

A small tear slid down her face. She gave another sigh, and wiped it clean off of her face. What a great way to be brought into the afterlife… First, she awakens and finds this guy looking like he's about to rape her, and then she finds out that he really isn't such a bad guy and ends up getting killed trying to save her from this giant praying mantis thing… She hated bugs… All of them—it didn't matter what the size or how pretty they were either. Well, just the big ones, anyways… And butterflies… That giant mantis thing was the nastiest piece of shit ever—she didn't ever want to see another one of those things again… They scared the shit right out of her, anyways. Anyways!? More like "Holy fuck—that thing is going to rip me in half!" …No wait—there wouldn't even be a half, because he'd turn her into macaroni! Fettuccini… Egg noodles or whatever… She hated rambling on to herself inside her mind… She often found that when she did that she failed to notice things going on around her.

She tried to set herself with her back against the tree, and sighed again, looking around her. The chirping of curiously sounding Northern birds tweeting in the trees did add to the atmosphere, and made the place seemingly more lively. She could make out the scent of all the pine needles and the sap that dripped from places on the trees where animals or other creatures had damaged its outer shell. The fragrance was quite lovely. She was a bio-nerd, as her friends called her—obsessed with her biology class, and always wanting to talk about it. She tried to recite the different types of kingdoms and classifications for things, trying to find at least one of each type before she would call herself "good."

Her eyes glanced about, and she spoke to herself, "Animalia… Plantae… Haha—there sure are a lot of those around here… Hmm…"

Fungiiiiiiiii—I… don't see any of those anywhere… Come on now… Fungi, fungi, fungi, fungi…… Oh—there's one. They can grow on the roots of some plants, right…? Hmm… The Prokaryotas arrrrrre… probably in the soil, and Monera… Hmm…"

"Hi~!"

"Aaaaack!!" Eve screamed, only to fall on her bottom. A strange individual dressed in a Catholic school girl outfit, wearing large, round glasses smiled down at her. The girl appeared to be somewhere around her age, and appeared to be fairly friendly at that.

She knelt down next to Eve, and readjusted her large black-rimmed glasses, "How're you? You just get here or something…?"

"I… um… Yyyyyeah, you could say that…" Eve replied, eying the individual suspiciously. The individual's black hair was done up in pigtails in the back, and she had a fairly Welsh-like appearance to her. One could only tell that her species would have been considered a Misdreavus, with their large dramatic eyes, rounded faces, and flowing wavy hair.

The Misdreavus girl giggled, extending a hand in her direction while resuming in her Welsh-accent, "My name is Myra, and you are…?"

"Umm… Eve, and… thanks…" Eve said, reaching for her hand. Myra helped pull her up, and patted her on the back. The two appeared to be somewhere around the same height, although it was plain to see Myra was considerably thinner, and had much more beautiful blue eyes compared to her slate-like… bore…

"Well, Eve…! It's a most great pleasure to meet you…! Looks as though you've gotten into a sprawl with something of the sort…"

"What do you mean…?" Eve blinked.

"I see that your breasts are showing… Quite unusual for one to be walking around like that, you know…?"

Eve blushed, and covered herself, "I… didn't do this on purpose… I found myself like that when I came here, and have since had no recollection of where I am or how I got here…!"

Myra laughed, "Well, you're in Limbo, in case you haven't figured it out already… I got sent here while playing on top of the roof at the school. The headmaster shouted me to come down, but I just continued to play. Then there came this terrible wind, and I don't know why I didn't try to sit down, but staying still didn't work at all. I slipped and fell, and cracked me head against the pavement when I'd fallen. I don't remember anything after that, but soon as I awoken, I found meself here, and have since just been wandering around…!"

"Ah…" Eve said, unsure of the strange girl in front of her. She pointed her eyes, and questioned, "What's with the big glasses?"

"Huh…? Ohhhhh, these! Oh, I can't see very well, so the eye doctor made me a pair after my mum paid him. They're awfully nice, but I still find them a bit too big…"

"And your clothes… What's with that get-up?"

"What…? Oh, you mean my clothes probably, don't you? I go to a Catholic school, so it's required that we wear this kind of garb…"

"I… didn't think that they'd have their skirts down that far… Wait a minute—what year did you die?" Eve blinked.

"Well, it was probably around 1933 when I died, so… I'm guessing it's been a while?"

Eve shook her head, "Try 75 years…!"

"Oh my… I'm a granny already…" Myra laughed.

Eve smiled, though a bit confused, "You sound… British… Are you from Britain?"

"Nay, rather from Wales, I am. And you! Why, you must be from the Americas, if I'm not mistaken?"

"I'm from Minnesota, and thanks…!" Eve smiled.

"Oh, why you're welcome! But, whatever for, Eve?"

It felt so strange to have her calling her "Eve" already, especially since they just met… The school girl had hardly known her for more than a few moments, and already she was talking to her as though they were good friends… Still, a friend at hand was better than being alone here… in the insanity of it all, anyways…

"Oh I, um… well… Never mind, I guess!" Eve giggled, feeling embarrassed.

"…But, your dress though… I'd think it would be atrocious to others to see you like this… What plans have you to do about it?"

"I… don't have any at the moment, really… I don't know how I'd fix it, or if I should even fix it… It would be great if I could get some new clothes though—at least something else to wear…"

"At least a pair of clean underwear, hm?" Myra giggled.

Eve sighed, "You'd have no idea… I feel sick already, there's… … …blood on my dress, I think, and I've got this greasy, ratty hair, and… my dress is all gone to hell, and, um… Yeah! I'd definitely go for a new pair of underwear sometime right about now." Eve nodded sarcastically.

"They do have shops, you know…" Myra added.

"Shops…? As in… here? In the underworld?"

"Well, not everyone could expect to keep their clothes forever…! Even in the underworld, things still get worn out time to time…"

"No, but seriously! Is there a place I could get some new clothes around here? Somewhere?"

Myra sighed, "There are, but they aren't quite as common as you'd think…"

"Please…! Where might I find one, Myra?"

"Oh, I don't ever keep track of places I've been… It had to have been at least four or five years ago…?"

"Ohhhhhhhhhh…!! Damn…!" Eve shouted, frustrated. "Well, why the hell are you so far out here then, Myra? I would have though you would have wanted to stay closer to civilization than to come somewhere out here…!"

Myra laughed lightly, "One would think, but I love wandering! I do it all the time! …Or, "did," anyways… But now—I can stay out as long as I'd like…! I can be free and do what I will, and not have to worry about going to class, or chores, or going to the store for me mum…"

Eve felt frustrated and upset, but still managed a small laugh, "I guess so… I sure wish I was as good off as you are… I think my arm is broken, and my ankle might be sprained…"

"Oh, it'll all heal eventually." Myra said as though it were only of minor importance.

Eve snorted, "Yeah—in a couple of weeks… I can't imagine what it would be like having to see another one of those damn praying mantis things while I've got this sprain…"

"Oh, I'd actually like to think in a couple of hours, really… Your body heals faster here in the afterlife."

Eve blinked, "Really? So, you mean that it'll just heal up after a few hours…?"

"I watched someone get decapitated once… It was quite horrific, because his body fell to the ground in a bloody heap. Still, it was only a few minutes later that his head and body reconnected themselves, and he was fine and all better."

Eve curled her lip in disgust, and gave a shout, "Ewwwwww!! That's gross! I wouldn't want to see that…!"

"I don't think anyone would, but it is still fascinating to witness the process of regeneration."

"Let them keep it to themselves, then… I already hate rated-R movies, only this sounds much worse…"

"Rated-R…?" Myra blinked, "I'm afraid I haven't a clue as to what you mean…"

Eve sighed, "It's a little passed your time, Myra. A lot of things have happened since you died—World War II, the Korean War, the British Invasion, the Cold War, space ships and technology, Disco, and all that 80's junk, and… Lots of stuff…"

Myra giggled again, "I guess so…! I only see the occasional person now and then, but most of them are from years far before your time or mine. Once I met a Chinese lord from the Zhou Dynasty. He was actually a really clever fellow—quite a bit!"

"Well, that's all great to hear… My arm is killing me though—are you sure it will—"

Eve paused, glancing at her arm in confusion. A strange feeling, like time itself were being reversed, warped her sense of reality, and she stared. She could hear the insides of her arm crack and grind against each other, as if moving towards and away from each other in sickening unison. She gasped and shuddered, holding her upper arm as she witnessed her body moving in a creepy manner, sickening noises of bones snapping and muscle bending. It made her stomach churn, but she still watched on as her arm moved on and on… Soon, the movement stopped, and her arm lacked its swelling, and returned itself back to normal.

She blinked and stared in awe at her arm. She twisted it around, noticing the lack of pain present. She looked at Myra, then back at her arm again. "Myra… Did you just see that…?!"

Myra giggled, "Happened to me arm once… After that, it all becomes natural~… Your ankle should be fine by now too, since I saw it doing the same thing too…"

"It's so… incredible…! How does this happen, Myra? Why does it happen, I mean…?"

"If an answer there was that I would know about, I would have given it to you on the first comment." Myra bowed to her.

Eve continued to stare at her arm, completely mystified at its incredible change… It got her to thinking to herself… If her arm was able to do this, and if the man Myra mentioned was decapitated still lived, then could it be that the young boy could also be alive…?

"Myra?"

"Yes Miss Eve?"

"Did you happen to see a young boy anywhere around here? He… had wolf ears, no shirt, tattoos all over, and… something like a pair of shorts that went down to his ankles-ish…"

"Oh~! He sounds ravishing then, doesn't he?" Myra laughed, clapping her hands in delight. "I'm afraid I haven't seen him then, or I would have been to him and brought him with me. Believe me—I'm really quite social…!"

"You sound like it…" Eve smirked, upset that she hadn't been able to find the boy who had saved her life. She blew a sigh, rolling her eyes as she gazed about the early morning atmosphere, when a hand appeared in front of her. She returned her gaze to see that Myra was holding out her hand to her.

"Friends?" Myra smiled. "I wanted to know if we could be friends, since we know so much about each other…!"

"If you'd want to be my friend…" Eve grumbled, shaking her hand, "I sure don't have a lot of them, now that I'm stuck in this place…"

"Oh, trust me! Soon we'll know all about each other, and we'll be gossiping away just like any other girls our age…!"

"You sure are quite feminine… You definitely –do- sound like a granny, sorry to say…"

"Oh my… I guess the times really have changed then, haven't they…" Myra sighed sadly. "It's just that I could remember gossiping with my friends whenever we had a moment to share—I guess you don't do that as much anymore…?"

"Oh no—we do, it's just…" Eve shrugged unassumingly, "We just… have a lot of time on our hands anyways and just use cell phones."

"Cell… phones…?" Myra blinked.

Eve groaned, "It's something far ahead of your time…! If I could, I would show you what they look like, but I didn't bring it with me when I went to my mother's funeral!"

"Your mother died? You poor thing…"

Eve could feel her brain starting to tick… This girl was just too chatty and too energetic. She gave a sigh and whirled around to face her, "It's alright. Could you please not talk so much? It's giving me a headache and I can hardly think to myself…!"

Myra didn't say a word, but looked rather surprised. She watched as Eve looked about her and take off in another direction. Myra followed her, walking behind her carefully as not to upset or disturb her.

She cleared her throat, and excused herself, "Excuse me for asking you Eve, but… where are you going, by any chance…?"

Questions were fine. As long as she didn't ask a stream of them, Eve and her would be perfectly fine on the questions level. She replied, "I'm looking for that boy I was telling you about… The… one with the black hair and the blue-green eyes…"

"Oh, you never told me his hair and… eye… colour…" Myra halted herself from talking too much.

"It's okay. I know he's got to be around here somewhere… I just don't know where…"

"Try looking right beside you, Eve…" a voice came from her right.

Eve gave a scream and jumped, running backwards into Myra after hearing the sudden voice of the intruder. Myra supported Eve by her shoulders as she came tumbling back, and watched as out of the forest came a tall, wolf-like human wearing only a pair of shorts with no shirt. Myra stared, and gave a little laugh.

"Eve…! I think this is that boy you were looking for?"

"Oh, hi… Sorry I scared you, um… Eve…?" The lad held his hand out to take hers.

Eve glanced at his hand, then at him before accepting his hand with hers. She pulled herself up and breathed a sigh, feeling her lip scrunch itself up. Tears flooded her eyes, and she threw herself upon his shoulder, and cried. Myra blinked, watching her in confusion. This girl was so abrupt with her emotions…! Now she was crying…?

Marcum held her close to him in his arms, gently stroking the back of her head as he hushed her, "Shh, shh… Everything is going to be okay, Eve… You're safe now…"

"I thought you were dead…! I felt so scared when I saw you get hit—I thought you died when you hit the ground…!"

"So… did I, actually… But I'm safe now… See…? I'm alright…!" He held out his hand to her, offering it to her. She looked at him, and then at his hand. She reached out for it, holding his hand in hers softly. His hands were rough, built up over the years with hundreds of calices, aged and worn to form a leathery shell around his hands… His gently glowing blue-green eyes smiled at her softly, meaning and intending no harm at all.

She could only gaze at him—at his shoulder, at his arms; at his entire being…! This was the boy she saw die. This was the boy who risked saving her life over his own. This was the boy… with the blue-green eyes…

***

The place at which Marcum resided at was quite interesting in Eve's eyes. She had never expected the place he lived in to be so small and run-down looking. She had to take into account however, that one person didn't need a whole lot of room to begin with. The small shack was built out of the local woods and ferns, held together by a primitive mud and straw mix were about all of what held it together. Despite that, it was a cozy looking home that provided comfort from the outdoors, a place to keep all his things in, and overall—just a place of peace.

Marcum had taken Eve and Myra back to his place, assuring that these travelers both had a place to stay for the meanwhile and for some company while they were still around. As the sun reached a bit closer to mid-day, the two girls found themselves sitting around a small fire that Marcum had built earlier in the day, tending to it like two girls on a camping trip. Marcum had gone off into the forest for food, leaving the two girls back at the camp. The deal, he proposed, was that Myra and Eve keep a healthy flame going while he would go off in search of some wild game to bring back for them to eat. Of course, not being used to the "wild game" idea of things, Eve was taken aback by what he said, and a bit horrified by the thought of skinning and gutting out an animal.

She gave a sigh, and stoked the fire with a longer stick while Myra experimented with several different types of leaves—each one producing a different colored flame as it would burn into smoke. Myra was as chatty as ever, obviously having a love for conversation… and for being annoying.

"…So, what do girls your age do in the future? Do you still play games outside and do chores as often?"

Eve sighed, "I'm not really from the future—it's just that you've been down here so long that it only seems like I'd be from the future."

"Oh, but I know! But it still fascinates me to see what changes might have taken place since I croaked…!"

Eve couldn't help laughing at her blunt statement. She giggled and spurted into laughter, covering her mouth and shaking her head. Myra was so spontaneous! It humored her to think this girl was actually that random! …Or, was she just a little dense…?

"Myra…!" She laughed, "You're so priceless…!!"

"Priceless…? So, I am without worth…?"

"Noooo! No, no, no!!" Eve laughed, although she felt a little sorry for Myra, "I mean to say you are worth more than money itself!"

"Oh! Why, that's quite thoughtful of you to say so!" Myra laughed with her, "But, whatever are we laughing for!?

"Nevermind, eheheh…" Eve said with a relaxed smile, brushing a strand of hair from in front of her eyes.

It hadn't been too long since they came upon this camp, and already feelings were starting to grow between the two. Myra seemed like a nicer girl—even if she was quite talkative and annoying sometimes, she was at least someone Eve could relate to… well, at least an "older edition," anyways… Since seeing her mother was now impossible, Eve didn't have any other girls or women to relate her to, so having Myra around would be a big help. She couldn't imagine trying to tell some of the things she would only tell her close girl friends to Marcum—he'd probably not understand heads or tails as to what they were talking about! Plus, none of these things really concerned him, so they wouldn't be any of his business… Well, it was that, and also the fact that there are some things you can only talk to a girl about, and some things you can only talk to a guy about… which made things even more interesting, considering the fact she didn't feel as comfortable around guys as she did around girls…! They were so… confusing… and weird…! She couldn't understand why they did half the things that they did… So, Myra would be more than helpful—she would be a godsend… Well, she'd have to explain cell phones, TV, and the sort, but… at least she had something to start on, and something was better than nothing.

Marcum returned, bearing the body of a slain deer in both of his arms. The animal, as large as it was, appeared light and dwarfed in the arms and hands of Marcum as he carried it back to the camp. The deer, having died with its tongue sticking out, appeared to be a yearling—its small stubby horns only having just started to grow on top of its head before its untimely death. From its side could be seen the gaping wound where Marcum had slain it with his spear—a weapon used strictly for terms of hunting, and always kept at the camp. He laid the deer beside the tent, a ways away from where the two girls were sitting, and began strapping and tying up the deer for skinning.

"Oh! Well, lookie here, Eve—Marcum's been a good lad, he has! Brought you and me supper, he did!"

Eve couldn't help but to look. Fortunately, he had gutted the deer out before returning back to camp, as a long ventricle cut could be seen down the bottom side of the animal, reaching from the mid-section of the chest down to the anus. She could feel her eyes watering up, and nearly gagged when she saw the amount of blood dripping from the open gash on the side of the animal. She gulped, turning her attention back to the fire, and shivered.

"Do the deer also regenerate if they've been slain…?" Eve felt her voice tremble. She loved deer. Deer were some of her most favorite animals in the world—and not because she watched Bambi when she was younger, either. Aside from rabbits, deer were the only animals Eve really loved more than anything else in the world…

"Um, I… don't… believe they do…" Myra answered, thinking aloud unsurely, "…Do they, Marcum?"

"The deer breed and populate while they are still alive. They create young ones of their own, which in turn grow to be bucks and does, and have young of their own. The ones here in Limbo don't come back to life, because in the real world they didn't have a real life… They've always been here…"

"The animals don't possess a soul, therefore they cannot live on…" Myra thought aloud, "Hmm… Yes—I do believe the Bible said animals were there for us to use…"

That hurt Eve, right there and then—that statement right there… Animals don't possess a soul…? But, how could that be possible? The animals—they felt fear, they felt anger, they felt sorrow and happiness…? How could they not have a soul? A cat purred! A dog whined, with its tail between its legs…! A mother sparrow chirped quietly and sadly over the death of its young after a hawk stole it from the nest…! How could these animals not have souls…? Was the world of Limbo really this harsh…?

Eve squeezed her hand tightly, hunching her shoulders over as she stared at the flame. The hot, dry earth around her combined with the heated vapors from the flames quickly dried her eyes out, and made her rub them, causing salty, irritating tears to form in her eyes as she hid her face. Now was not the time to be crying—Marcum had done them a very big favor by getting them something to eat. Myra also told her the truth—she shouldn't be getting depressed and upset about something she asked about. Marcum was alive and well, and it was clear to see that he wasn't dead or hurting anymore… But the deer… …

"I wish the deer would live…" Her voice trembled softly…

"Hm…?" Myra turned towards Eve.

Eve continued to sniffle for a bit, wiping the tears away from her eyes as she struggled to keep a straight face, looking up to repeat her bit.

"…I said I just wished that the deer would live. That's all…"

"Oh, but the deer do live, Eve—there's deer all around us."

"I meant I wished they would come back and live…! Kinda like us…!" Eve felt her voice shake, "I just… … I mean… the animals have just as much right to live as we do, so what I'm saying is we shouldn't just kill them to eat them."

Myra blinked, "Oh, um… If you didn't want to eat any of the deer, you're more than welcome to have some of the mushrooms or other plants around here—you don't have to have any of the deer…"

Now Eve just felt bad. She felt like she was being whiny. And furthermore, she wasn't able to get her point across… but… Myra and Marcum would have different views… and telling them they were wrong—err, that they had a different opinion from hers—no, wait…! … … …

It was just... plain frustrating! Maybe she was thinking too much about it—maybe she should just let it go and find some of those plants they were talking about and eat some. Or just go to bed. …No—it was way too early for that, and she still wanted to get to know them better… but with her crying like this, and the deer, and what they might think because she thought differently and didn't want to eat the deer and all, and…

She scrunched up in a ball again and gritted her teeth, fighting back the tears again. By this time, Marcum had approached and placed his hands on her shoulders, his hands cleaned from the skinning, but still smelling of the flesh of the animal. It made her want to gag, but she didn't. Her face turned very red, and she could feel very embarrassed for having caused such a scene… She didn't want all this attention—why couldn't she just… rewind the clock and start the day over, start the day to just a few minutes ago to before they were talking about the deer…? Now it was just getting plain messy and stupid…! It just made her want to… … …!

"Eve…? You alright…?"

"Mmyeah…?" Eve whimpered—the sticky contents of her mouth slurring part of her speech. It was irritating—that… warm, slimy sticky stuff that tried to keep your lips shut, and yet made the really good stuff for spit bubbles…? She wished it wasn't there—and it kind of felt like she had crud around the corners of her lips… How utterly embarrassing…!

He knelt down beside her, and wrapped his arms around her, laying his head on her shoulder… and hugged her…

"…You'll be fine…" he whispered in her ear.

She blushed, her face turning quite red, and felt shivers race down her spine. She quickly turned back to face him, inquiring him, "W… what…? W-what do you mean…?"

"You're crying…" he replied softly.

She brushed him aside, taking a look off to the side where a few blades of grass were blowing softly in the wind, "Oh, I wasn't crying—it's just… smoke in my eyes, and the hot air from the fire—"

He held her tightly, pressing his face against the back of her head, nuzzling her gently…

"…It's alright…"

She felt herself shiver and shake, even though it was really warm out. Her tears were building up again, and she could feel her breathing intensify. Her mouth turned down into a frown, and she closed her eyes, pressing her face against his chest as she began crying again. Her sad whining filtered into her voice, to which all he did was stroke her hair and nuzzle her softly…

"You'll be okay, Eve… Everything's going to be alright, now…"

She clung to him, hearing those words… It seemed so awkward that she would have only met him yesterday, gone through so little, and yet… it seemed like she had done so much… She really liked him… She really, really did like him… And...

…She hugged him back.

Myra, watching from afar, couldn't help but to sniffle as well. Making the sign of the Holy Trinity, she smiled and held her hands together, her thick-heeled shoes resting on the edge of a stump while she watched the two embrace. She reached under her shirt to pull out a small, white kerchief, which she used to wipe her face down with before drying off her eyes.

"Oh my~…! This is all very lovely-like… I'm sorry to say, but it makes me quite envious…!"

Trying to turn her humor elsewhere, she spied the deer carcass, to which she commented, "Well, Eve, I don't think you'll have to worry about finding a shop anymore—I'd like to think you could use the deer skin here for something!"

Marcum and Eve couldn't help but to laugh. Eve glanced up at Myra with sparkling eyes, even if the idea sounded quite atrocious to her.

"Thanks, Myra…" she smiled. Something told her it was going to be a long life here in the afterlife, but with two friends—maybe things wouldn't quite be so bad after all…


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

She wouldn't have liked things to have ended that way, but that's not always how things turn out… … …

It was the night of the Harvester's Moon—the great time of the year where farmers would harvest their fields for the fruits of their labor, storing their maize and grains for the winter, to last them until the following spring. It was during the last time of the year the produce would be fit and healthy before the coming of the frost. With the large pale, gold moon high in the sky over the horizon, the beauty of the night would be complete with its seemingly peaceful atmosphere… but evil always knew when to strike…

…And it did…

Her eyes shot open, and she immediately disbanded from her position atop a high branch of a Japanese Oak tree, well into its prime. Down to the ground, she landed without a sound, and set herself to a running sprint, taking off quickly through the fields of wheat before coming upon the edge of the nearby property line. From here, the landscape changed dramatically from its fields of wheat into rice paddy fields, and the walkways would be narrow and thin. She rushed quickly through them, scarcely without making so much more than a splash, and continued on forth before the faint candle lights of the small village became apparent; a tiny black dot racing through the cold October night. Farmers and others of the sort would be long asleep by now—night tide was not the time to be harvesting, as no one knew what evil dangers would come in the night…

Evil dangers, indeed…

Not too far off in the distance, she could make out the small settlement where she made her home, along with her family. From the sounds she had gathered, and the stillness that the night brought, she sensed that there would be destruction... An angry wave of people was sweeping throughout the town—their arms bearing tools of riot and havoc. Their angry shouts filled the streets, filled with hatred for their lord who governed them all. From what she had learned from the townsfolk in recent days, the lord had angered the town's people by robbing them of their crop, selling it away for his own personal profit to which he would waste on gambling. There was also talk of a mysterious slave trade taking place, as random individuals would go missing, and never return… In exchange, he brought forth more money, which he used again for his selfish wants, and gave nothing back to the people. Angered, the townsfolk had ambushed the castle in seek of their lord, but he was naught to be found. The lord was known for such acts of cruelty, and would soon get what was coming to him. It was said that he hid himself away in one of the smaller houses where only the peasants would make their home. Not only was the lord sought out by the townspeople, but also was the rest of his court, and those who associated themselves with him. Anyone who showed any resistance of any sort to the capture of the lord or his followers would soon find themselves devastated by the hands of the public resistance. Quickly, she made haste, rushing through the tall grasses before making her way into the town. Only lanterns crafted out of wood, fueled by oil, and protected against the wind by paper light should have ever lit this night… But, she knew that this was not to be. Houses raged in fiery flames, and the screams of many filled her ears as she witnessed countless innocents burn or be slain. She had to get home. She had to get there…

Long and slender was her face, with the eyes of a wolf, and the strength of the dragon built into her arms, lithe like a cat and quick as the acting poison of a snake's venom. She made her way through the wreckage quickly, intent on finding her home. Her family was at risk, and during such an obstruction she knew she would have to act quickly. Up ahead, she could see the angry mob storming through the village, rushing through each of the houses with their long swords, destroying the precious heirlooms which hung about every doorstep, and torching the structures to leave them up in flames. She couldn't face them head on… Anyone trying to get through a mob like that would have to be crazy with a serious death wish… She would have to make her way past them through the alleyways, moving as stealthily as possible. She didn't want to have to hurt anyone—only get the job done and move her family out. That was her only intention, and that was her only goal. No one would stand in the way of her and her family and live to tell about it… That was her only exception…

She ducked into the alley to her right, passing through the tiny moving quarters as smoothly as she could. She moved quickly, although not with great haste. The mission was to get there undetected, and not blunder herself over careless simple mistakes. Those would cause her her life. Her feet covered with padded cloth slippers, she made not a noise while passing underneath a window, where could be heard the noises of terror, as a man found himself confronted by the resisting mob, ending his life with a sword through his back—his scream would be of the last breath he took… It was a sad and unfortunate thing that men killed each other blindly for the sake of fear, or without knowing what they were fighting for… That man had been a dedicated maker of scroll paper… His work helped fuel many poets, who used the paper to write beautiful songs, delicate poetry, or artwork that astounded peers all over the town… Perhaps in the afterlife he would still be as admired…? She stepped out from between the houses, and into the street, peering back and forth to check her surroundings… Not a noise, nor a subject in sight… She was safe, but even safety had its limits. They would come at any moment, and then her life would be in danger. She dashed quickly with the advantage of no one in front of her to stop her on her way… But wait—a yell! Someone had found her! Behind her—they saw her! But, she was so close to home…! She could still make it… There was still time enough for her to get her husband and daughter, and for the three to make their escape… With an extra burst of speed, she dashed the remaining distance until she made it to her home. The home was still standing—thank goodness… Quickly, she slid open the door, her body running out of breath as she gasped, "Sezaku! Where is Yae!? Sezaku—"

She stopped in mid sentence, staring horrifically at the event that followed. Before her stood her husband—a ninja much in the same way as she was, with his arms grasping the arm around his neck. There came a sickening cutting sound, as a long and deadly blade came jutting out from the center of his chest, spraying crimson red blood from deep within his body. The shower of blood only lasted a moment, drenching the floor in its almost-black appearance and bitter smell… The sight of his blood made her heart sink, but the look on his face as he witnessed his own death—the twitching of his eyelids as life itself was being taken from him… was more than enough to make the hairs stand on the back of her neck… His barely audible voice, grunting as he tried to talk around the mass of blood dripping out of his mouth… His sad, sorrowful face as he saw her before him…

"Ha… ya… su… R… run…!!"

"SEZAKU!!" She screamed, her arms and limbs trembling at the sight, as her lover slowly descended to the floor for the last time, his killer having released the hold on his neck. It was over... Her husband was dead… All that they had struggled to build in their lifetime—their short marriage of seven years… so abruptly halted by the painful taker of life—Death… If only she had hurried… If only she had gotten there quicker—she might have saved him… But now, that hope was all lost—his life was… She gritted her teeth… To have one's life taken… To not allow one to slay themselves… His dishonorable killer would pay and suffer this most disgraceful act…

The killer chuckled, using a cloth robbed from her husband's body to wipe off the blood from his sword, "Run, run, run… Running won't do you any good, if you have the demon of death riding on your shoulders…"

That voice seemed so familiar… so distinct and ominous… Only one man she knew had that seemingly low and nasally sounding tone to their voice…

"Kazuki-sama…!" She snarled, recognizing her husband's killer.

He stepped out from the darkness, his geta appearing first as he made his way forth... The geta sandals clicked as they made contact with the tatami flooring, passing by the slain form of Sezaku… The light from the fire place added luminance to his body, as slowly came forth the form of Lord Kazuki, the ruler of the nearby castle, and the one responsible for the town's crimes…

"Your husband wasn't much of a challenge…! I was quite disappointed to find that he couldn't hold his place in a noble battle…"

"Sezaku didn't fight battles…! He strangled his prey until they were weak, on the spot before he finished them quickly! You took advantage of him, didn't you?!"

"His house is mine now, as is his spirit, for I have taken his life with me." Sezaku said, advancing slowly towards Hayasu. The blade gleamed wickedly at his side, shining a familiar kanji towards her that made her shudder… She knew very well what that symbol meant, and felt her blood boil even further.

"The Kuroi Kage Tama no Ken…! It… It was supposed to have been sealed away and banished from the mortal realm…!"

"You are a fool to think that a mere sword made of steel would ever make its absence away from this world… What an utter fool... hnnhnnhnn…"

"Your laughs are as cold and empty as your soul… You are one without light, and filled hollow with the emptiness of an October wind…!" She held back her tears, gritting her teeth as he stood before her.

"A soul is not always something filled with the essence of all things light, nor can an empty shell ever really be considered unfilled…" She countered, that face still remaining hidden within the shadows.

She cursed his ignorance, but adopted a fighter's stance… Always on guard… She had to always be on guard… No matter what the situation was at hand, she had to assure herself at least three quick escape plans, should he plan his next move to be an aggressive maneuver…

"At least a real human who has a soul would understand what it's like to have a soul…!"

"What do you take me for, a human…?" he chuckled darkly… She could see an evil red gleam in the shadow of his right eye; while a dark and menacing aura appeared to rise out from his body…She shivered…

"You're… You're not Lord Kazuki…!"

He lunged forth, grasping her tightly by the back of the neck. She could feel his fingers digging deep into her skin, and the suffocating feeling being the most intoxicating feeling she had ever felt. She gagged and struggled, attempting a scream while she flailed her legs about.

"You're right—I'm not Lord Kazuki…! I'm his little… demon… friend…"

"A… a… akkkk… kkkumma…!!" She rasped, the tears beginning to flow from her eyes.

He grinned insidiously, the wickedness far from leaving his face as he lifted her above the ground, his fangs sharp and pointed, slightly yellowed with age as they formed a hideously tight and toothy smile.

"What a charming and otherwise perfectly delicate little creature… To think that with a flick of my wrist that all life within you would be lost forever; drowning in your blood while it flowing down your face as my lengthy talons continue to crush and destroy your pitiful brain… You really are at my mercy then I suppose…?"

"You will die the moment I get my hands a hold of you…!" She struggled, flailing her legs in every which direction she could aim. She seized a chance, using her legs to run up his arm, and attempted to break her captor's hold free, pressing her body weight quick and hard against his hand. The hand, she knew, was both as strong as it was weak. The underside of the hand, she knew, could not bend very well, therefore forcing it to bend would either snap off his hand, or cause him great pain to let her go.

…It didn't work out quite as well as she had hoped!!

He grabbed a foot with his other hand while it was climbing up his arm, and released his hold on her throat to hold her suspended upside down in front of him. His sinister laughing only continued while the ninja hung helplessly from his grip, unable to move, and with a surge of blood rushing to her head. She was beginning to feel quite dizzy, and too much motion would do her a great deal of harm.

"You would kill me, if only you could ever get at me…! Your ploys are predictable and useless against me. Only the power of the moon could ever put a stop to my wild affairs!"

"What have you done with my daughter…!?" Hayasu cried.

"She is of no importance to you now. Your life is in grave danger, and soon to be dismissed…!"

"Then tell me before I go, or else I will come back from the grave to finish you! What have you done to my daughter!?" She reached for a smoke bomb inside her vest.

"Mama…?" Came a tiny voice a short distance away.

Hayasu shivered, turning her head to glance at the direction the voice had been traveling from. A short distance away stood a small girl, only 4' tall, with long and flowing black hair, and black eyes. Her tiny snout hinted that she was much like her mother—an Absol, as they were called. Known for causing destruction and devastation with whatever crosses their path, they were seen as a sign of ill omen. Wearing a beautiful white kimono with dozens of intricately painted flowers, she looked as though she herself could pass off as a young kimono girl in training.

The young girl had already spied her mother, and cried, "Mama… Daddy's dead… Mama…!"

"Yae—…!" Hayasu shouted. It

was

A

Blood

RUSH!!

She screamed… The blood hurt her face, and already she could feel her brain pulsating uncontrollably. If she took too much more pressure, chances were she would end up popping a vein in her head.

Yae flinched visibly, seeing her mother trapped and screaming in pain… She started to cry again, "Mama…! Help me…!"

"Yae—run…! Run now!!" Hayasu shouted, finally freeing herself from the demon's clutches. She hit the floor with an audible 'thud,' and immediately began coughing.

Yae backed away from her mother, trembling in fright, "Mama…! Mama!!"

"Yae—go!! NOW!!"

"MAMA!!"

The demon sneered at the sight of the two pitiful females, and stalked the young girl in front of her. He drew out his sword once again, and approached loudly. Hayasu could feel her blood running cold, and a sudden overwhelming sense of fear filling every inch of her body. She attempted to pull herself up, but found her arm muscles too weak to lift her. She gave a scream, "YAE!! YAE, RUN NOW!! RUN NOW YAE! RUN!!"

Yae cried uncontrollably, slumping down onto the ground in fright as the demon finally approached her. He reached down, and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck. Slowly, he lifted her up off the ground… Yae whimpered as she struggled, crying…

"It hurts…! It hurts!!"

Her daughter was in danger, her life was in danger, her family was on the verge of being murdered, her husband was dead, and her husband's killer was a demon that was before them at the moment… But her daughter—Her daughter!!

"_She can't die!! _

_Don't let her die!! _

_Don't kill her—don't let her die!!"_

Hayasu couldn't bear the thought of what would happen next, and gave a scream… Up on her feet, her body somehow involuntarily found the strength to get back up on her feet, and her arms regained their strength to move… She unsheathed her daggers from her belt, and rushed forth towards her opponent, screaming horrifically and hysterically… She had him now—she would kill him now, she would—

"Gaauuckk…!!!"

His… wickEd

Grin…

as he pUShed the

sWord  
IN

!!!

Her body felt cold—it… it felt… cold…

She shook her head, and blinked to look down—

Blood…

Spraying…

FLoWing… she

was

dYIng…

The sword was… removed… and withdrawn from her… body… She could feel herself shaking, and… shivering; the… shock of the moment… hadn't… brought… pain… yet…

Her vision became clouded… The loud sound of blood flowing through her ears deafened her senses… Her mouth remained ajar, blood dripping and falling from out of her mouth… Her arms and legs were weak… Her body felt depleted… and… slowly, she… sank… down…

Her daughter screamed…

Mommy could not help her…

She was crying…

And SHE was crying…

A snapping sound…

A muffled falling sound…

A seemingly added weight to her abdomen…

An emptiness… a

sense

of in-

completeness…

"_I love you Yae…"_

***

It was a bit late in the evening when the three had decided to stop their daily activities. Eve, Marcum, and Myra took rest at the edge of a worn-out trail, determined to keep on moving, but too tired at the moment to really do anything. Marcum called it "szitzflig," or "idle and lazy restfulness." His language did appear to be quite different than that of Myra or Eve's, which only gathered the girls' interest whenever he spoke it. As he was a quieter creature, getting to hear him speak was a big eye and ear-opener for when they were in his company.

The three had decided to get something to eat, as Eve hadn't quite adapted to this life without eating, while Myra had an obsession with eating, as just as that. Sitting on the ground, Marcum observed while the two teenaged girls talked and rushed back and forth, preparing the ingredients for what would soon be their supper. Myra had told her of an old recipe that her grandmother taught her, a recipe to make a cheap but easy kind of bread. Since nothing else in the forest sounded appealing, Eve took her offer up on it, and together the two were bustling together to get the needed materials for their project. Marcum only snorted, and remained off to the side, preferring to keep out on lookout for any danger, especially should any other of the large mantis creatures come storming about. Eve was particularly peculiar about the way Myra gathered and collected things. The funny little Welsh Misdreavus knew the exact amount of wild wheat needed, how many wild berries would be best to add to each batter being made, and how many other grains of wild oats were needed to embellish the dish. This confused Eve—she never knew there was such an art to making bread in her life! Without thinking, she decided to ask…

"Myra?"

"Yes'm?"

"Have you ever seen Iron Chef?"

"Iron…?" Myra frowned, looking at her strangely, "Wait—what is it called again?"

"Whoops…! Sorry—no you haven't…" Eve blushed, as realization came shining on through. She hadn't even thought to think and realize that Myra was well over sixty years older than her. Of course she wouldn't have ever heard of Iron Chef! She doubted many others in Limbo would have, lest they came from her time frame…

"I haven't got what?" Myra demanded, her powdery hands resting on the edge of her plaid-striped skirt.

"Nothing…" Eve smiled embarrassingly, trying to avoid the topic of the conversation.

"No, no, no—you listen to me! Whether or not me haves what you are trying to tell me or not is completely up to me. It's my part to decide, milady…"

"She said something about an Iron Chef…" Marcum replied, rubbing under his snout as he bounced the middle of his spear against his knee.

Eve frowned angrily at him, "Marcum~!" She huffed and looked rather frustrated, "You blew it—thanks a lot…"

Myra giggled, "Looks like he's on my side this time…!"

"Whether he is on your side or not, he'll probably turn on you too…" Eve scoffed, rolling her end of the dough with aggression. "In fact, I don't even think he has a side he's on! He's just a big… unimportant… lazy, indecisive guy who likes to do nothing all day except sit there and watch the grass grow!"

"Looks to me more like he's watching his toenails~…" Myra giggled before erupting into a series of laughs.

Eve raised a brow, "Um… It's not that funny…?"

The two continued to bicker and laugh without spending too much time realizing what was going on around them, while Marcum kept a steady eye on the horizon… There was something amiss that seemed to bother him… He kept his profile low—his eyes forming slits as he glared across the prairie around them… There was something out there, alright… But what it was, he didn't know… The air was heavy, and that usually meant the coming of a storm. But, the land didn't feel like it was going to rain… Not even the skies showed any promise of rain—there were no clouds, on a blindly obvious level… But wait…!

His eyes shot open, and he gasped. He turned his head quickly to the girls and shouted, "Keep your voices down and don't move!!"

Myra and Eve froze, although Eve had started to laugh with Myra—noticed by the smile she had on her face. She made a false sounding fart, to which she and Myra giggled. Marcum held a finger up to the front of his nose, and lowered his eyebrows at the two, indicating a respect for silence. The two quieted down, while the hunter quietly listened to the air around them.

"Yas hid fvis njam kaqvi…" he uttered quietly. His ears turned in direction of where the noise was supposedly coming from, and remained still. Eve couldn't hear the noise—she didn't know what was going on at all. Why was he freaking out at her like that? Was he just being a brat like he was naturally good at being?

She noticed him extend his arm out slowly, pointing off at something in the woods beyond view. It was sort of… spider-shaped, with eight strong and hairy legs, as well as a face rather than a head which protruded slightly out from the torso, yet on its face it had actual jaws and teeth like a lion or a wolf… Its body was a bit large—it looked to be roughly the size of a small car, give or take a foot or two. Its eyes appeared vacant, while its nose appeared to be nothing more than two slits on the front of its face… Its back end seemed plainly nonexistent, much unlike the spider which had an opisthosoma on its back end… More or less, it looked like something from a bad B-movie from the 80's, but she knew she had to keep quiet on this. Just because it looked like something from the 80's didn't necessarily mean it wasn't dangerous…

"Marcum…!" she whispered, "What do they do?"

"They sit and wait for their prey to make a move… Then, they rush in and grab them using their huge jaws and crush them under their weight and pressure of the jaw's muscles…!" He explained.

"Wow—sounds like just about everything else that walks on four… plus… legs and has sharp jaws like that…" Eve mocked sarcastically.

"Be careful… It's already seen us… It's waiting to make a move…"  
Eve jumped, "What!! You mean that thing's out for us!?"

"They jump! Now shut up!!" Marcum yelled back at her.

"I don't believe this…!" Eve said, backing away from Marcum.

"Well, better start believing, because stuff like this happens everyday…" Marcum said, keeping both eyes and ears forward.

"_Guess I'd better keep quiet, then…" _Eve said quietly to herself, watching the seemingly eventless situation. She didn't know Marcum all that well, aside from the fact he had saved her life, and she really respected him for that… Let alone that he was joining her and Myra, just to help her find some sort of civilization around here where she would feel most comfortable…

The beast gave a low, growling noise, sounding somewhere between a lion and an insect. …What was with all of these insects, anyways? Why were they flying and crawling all over the place? Wasn't Limbo meant to be just this random hole in the ground where lost souls ended up…? Now, there's all these crazy bugs and… flying… insect creatures with effing HUGE teeth, sharp claws, dead-looking eyes and… It just seemed like something out of a HORROR movie to her. Where were they coming from…?

The monster began moving, slowly advancing towards the group in a sickeningly slow spider-like manner. Seeing the way it moved, and how it clacked its teeth together, Eve tried to resist a scream—she hated spiders. She HATED them… She tried to hold back a scream while she bit her tongue, seeing how terrifying the monster really looked. It opened its mouth, to which its face split in four different directions to reveal a complex circular mouth system, and rows upon rows of teeth… Eve screamed…

"DAMN!!" Marcum shouted as the beast responded to her call, accelerating its mobility on eight legs and rapidly approaching fast. He turned the girls around and pushed them with his hand, shouting, "Go! Get away—I'll deal with him!"

"But he's so much bigger than you!!" Eve shouted.

"It didn't stop him before against the big Megamantodea, did it?" Myra said as she pulled Eve by her arm. She noticed the large tear ripping through the sewn place around her bust area and groaned. She blew a sigh and added, "You really need to get some new clothes, unless you want to go around showing yourself off all day."

"YOU try wearing this around, wherever you go…!" Eve argued as the two girls ran.

Marcum held his ground, extending his spear and preparing for a round of melee combat. What happened because of the girls didn't matter to him—it was what was going to happen as a result of this battle…! He had to protect them from this dangerous creature that meant them harm… He knew what they were capable of… These creatures… would actually devour souls… There was no reviving from a bite mark caused by these monsters…

He growled and held on to his spear tightly, planting his feet into the ground to improve traction. The monster continued to advance forth, having slowed down after seeing the spear. It came to a halt eight feet in front of him, and crouched on its legs. Marcum knew what it was about to do… Marcum KNEW what it was about to do…!!

Quickly, he whirled his spear out in front of him, holding it like a jousting pole and ducked. Not a moment too soon, the creature came crashing at him, impaling itself through the mouth upon the spear. The monster gave a horrible shriek, pulling back from him with the spear still lodged through the roof of its mouth. Using its legs, it attempted to remove the spear, trying to scrape or bite it out of its mouth to free itself. Marcum saw this as an ample opportunity to reach for another weapon. But, what was there about for him to grab…?!

A large rock lay near his feet, which had originally served as the cutting board for both Myra and Eve while they were making their bread. Serving no purpose except as an object in his line of vision, he quickly lifted the larger rock with both hands, holding it over the top of his head and aimed. He wasn't about to give the ant lion-like beast a chance to recover—he'd sooner see it dead than moving. With a shout, he gave the rock a hurl, and sent the rock smashing on top of the creature's head. A large complex eye shattered, and with it splurted a long stream of greenish-red ooze, spraying in all directions as the vessel of the eye became undone. As the release continued to gush from the loose and flabby membrane, the eyes of the ant lion started to glow a bright yellow, and it began to rapidly clack its jaws and teeth together. The spear crushed itself in its jaws, and ruled out the possibility of using it for another strike, leaving Marcum to figure out something else. He backed away, holding his ground in case of a retreat as he scoured the surrounding area for anything else that he could use to defend himself. Realizing the small dagger he carried at his side, he drew his small and practically worthless weapon, and brandished it loudly in front of the monster, yelling at it to show his ferocity. The attack did little to deter the beast, and only moments later did it position itself into a crouch again—the pose he knew all too well. It was about to strike again…!

Lock arms, lock legs, position ready and—

ROLL!!

The beast threw itself in Marcum's direction, only to miss the swift and nimble fighter and continued crashing into what loose amounts of brush and trees were in its path. It gave a scream as it yanked one of its legs out from a blackened section of the earth. Its leg sizzled as an awful reek smoked off from its leg. Marcum blinked before he came upon this realization. Fire! The beast didn't like fire! It would make sense, since very few creatures, even down here in Limbo, could withstand the flames of a fiery doom. With the stoking stick still lying in the fire pit, Marcum made a quick dash, grabbing the still-lit stick, and waved it about. He held the stick close to the hairs on the underside of the creature's body, and quickly backed away as the creature began to scream and roar, attempting to drop its body on the earth to extinguish the flames. Marcum knew that if the creature succeeded, it would not only try to go after him, but it would be much more aggressive and quicker at that. Now was the time for him to finish the job! Holding the stick out once more, he attempted to light the side of the creature, covered in the now-sticky goo excreted from the gaping wound in its eye. The goo, being extremely flammable, didn't take long before it reacted with the hot end of the stick, and started to sizzle. The ant lion screeched, and attempted to attack Marcum with its long pinchers, but to no effect—without sight from one of its primary eyes, it was harder to locate and defend itself against this smaller and more agile foe! It attempted to recoil and shrink back, only to back into a cluster of tree trunks and branches, hindering its backwards movement. It lashed out in another attempt to bite at him, only to get a mouth full of air before its eye socket quickly caught aflame. The creature flailed about in a withered manner as black smoke began to rise from its gaping wound, and moaned while clacking its teeth together. The flames began to rise as the fire sought out to burn the creature's "head" first and foremost before getting the rest of the body. With an impaled mouth, a missing eye, and a burning "head," the creature wasn't guaranteed to live long, but still he held the spear right in place. The thick, black smoke was almost toxic, making it incredibly hard to breathe as it smoked off of his body, rising into the air in an incredibly dense manner. It was quite revolting, and completely awful to have to breathe. Finally exhausted and finding the lack of strength left to survive, the gigantic creature gave an ending screech before collapsing on the ground in a savage heap.

Marcum watched it carefully, his eyes holding over with a glint of the warrior within as he made sure the creature was no longer going to rise up on its feet again. He remained still for a time, where only he and beast remained locked in that grip of death… Sensing nothing, he gave a loose sigh, easing his body up, and withdrew his spear from its clutches, turning himself around to slowly depart from camp. Now he had to find Eve, and Myra… Saturated in the blood of his opponent, he came out victorious from the battle—one among many he had to fight while having been here in this strange and desolate land…

He wiped the blood and sweat from his forehead, his thick callused heels walking over the earth with only the sound of one trekking through the fields. He remained relaxed, now letting the warrior side of him dissipate into the shadowy crevices of his mind to replace itself with his former, mellower state, and listened carefully for their voices. More importantly was it that he follow their footprints, and use them and whatever other trail markers that they left to track them down and return to their company. Not that he needed them, but that it wouldn't be customary to leave them so abruptly without a seeing-off before parting ways… and that wasn't something he wanted to do, either.

There came a gurgling noise behind him…

It rushed up fast!—He spun himself around to—

It screeched… … …

Massively, it towered above him, using four of its eight legs to hold it up as it had prepared to pounce him… Through its heart, a long, thin blade protruded through its carcass… So quick and so adeptly did both things happen; like the icy frost coming to signal summer's bane…

She stood before him, eyes focused on her kill as she stared at it with glaring eyes… Dressed in equally as unusual wear as Eve, this obvious female was –also- a warrior of sorts, such as he… Only she… was different…

"Vespi tchak…!" Marcum swore, "My back was unguarded…! You saved my life…!"

"A cautionary word of advice, traveler…" The female figure warned him, "Never leave your back to your enemy. It is foolish, and but one way to learn the ways of a humiliating defeat… Your friends are yonder in yon field. Tell them 'tis best they reside closer to the forests, lest they should be wanting such encounters again…"

Marcum stood baffled.

"Wh-wait—what? What do you…? Wh-who are you…?"

The individual sheathed her sword back into its sheath, still staring far off into the distance, "A lone traveler, much like yourself… My clan was naught but of myself and my master, and I seek for he who it was that slay'd me in my former life, and ended my daughter's life, as well as that of my husband's… You have no need to know of my name, but my name as a shinobi would be… Midnyte…"

He shivered lightly…

"Find yourself refuge in the next town over… There's a dark storm brewing itself about, and far many more dark figures appearing in these parts… Even the animals fear for their sense of nonexistence in this futile world…

"You know of the one they call Michael…?"

"Y… Yes…" Marcum nodded, listening intently.

She remained quiet for a time, "…There is not much more she can do. She should leave now if it all really matters to her. Take her to the city. Her adventure… is unwinding…!"

With a sudden flash of light, Midnyte disappeared, to leave Marcum blinking in bewilderment… Where had she gone, and to disappear so quickly…? The dust settled before he was able to see his way again, and he sighed, taking his spear with him to turn around and find Eve and Myra again. Suddenly, a small star-shaped bit of metal came whizzing over his shoulder to strike the earth before him. With it, a piece of paper with writing on it of some sort. He looked it over, and blinked.

"_Never leave your back to your enemy"_

***

It was a bit late in the evening when the three had decided to stop their daily activities. Eve, Marcum, and Myra took rest at the edge of a worn-out trail, determined to keep on moving, but too tired at the moment to really do anything. Marcum called it "szitzflig," or "idle and lazy restfulness." His language did appear to be quite different than that of Myra or Eve's, which only gathered the girls' interest whenever he spoke it. As he was a quieter creature, getting to hear him speak was a big eye and ear-opener for when they were in his company.

The three had decided to get something to eat, as Eve hadn't quite adapted to this life without eating, while Myra had an obsession with eating, as just as that. Sitting on the ground, Marcum observed while the two teenaged girls talked and rushed back and forth, preparing the ingredients for what would soon be their supper. Myra had told her of an old recipe that her grandmother taught her, a recipe to make a cheap but easy kind of bread. Since nothing else in the forest sounded appealing, Eve took her offer up on it, and together the two were bustling together to get the needed materials for their project. Marcum only snorted, and remained off to the side, preferring to keep out on lookout for any danger, especially should any other of the large mantis creatures come storming about. Eve was particularly peculiar about the way Myra gathered and collected things. The funny little Welsh Misdreavus knew the exact amount of wild wheat needed, how many wild berries would be best to add to each batter being made, and how many other grains of wild oats were needed to embellish the dish. This confused Eve—she never knew there was such an art to making bread in her life! Without thinking, she decided to ask…

"Myra?"

"Yes'm?"

"Have you ever seen Iron Chef?"

"Iron…?" Myra frowned, looking at her strangely, "Wait—what is it called again?"

"Whoops…! Sorry—no you haven't…" Eve blushed, as realization came shining on through. She hadn't even thought to think and realize that Myra was well over sixty years older than her. Of course she wouldn't have ever heard of Iron Chef! She doubted many others in Limbo would have, lest they came from her time frame…

"I haven't got what?" Myra demanded, her powdery hands resting on the edge of her plaid-striped skirt.

"Nothing…" Eve smiled embarrassingly, trying to avoid the topic of the conversation.

"No, no, no—you listen to me! Whether or not me haves what you are trying to tell me or not is completely up to me. It's my part to decide, milady…"

"She said something about an Iron Chef…" Marcum replied, rubbing under his snout as he bounced the middle of his spear against his knee.

Eve frowned angrily at him, "Marcum~!" She huffed and looked rather frustrated, "You blew it—thanks a lot…"

Myra giggled, "Looks like he's on my side this time…!"

"Whether he is on your side or not, he'll probably turn on you too…" Eve scoffed, rolling her end of the dough with aggression. "In fact, I don't even think he has a side he's on! He's just a big… unimportant… lazy, indecisive guy who likes to do nothing all day except sit there and watch the grass grow!"

"Looks to me more like he's watching his toenails~…" Myra giggled before erupting into a series of laughs.

Eve raised a brow, "Um… It's not that funny…?"

The two continued to bicker and laugh without spending too much time realizing what was going on around them, while Marcum kept a steady eye on the horizon… There was something amiss that seemed to bother him… He kept his profile low—his eyes forming slits as he glared across the prairie around them… There was something out there, alright… But what it was, he didn't know… The air was heavy, and that usually meant the coming of a storm. But, the land didn't feel like it was going to rain… Not even the skies showed any promise of rain—there were no clouds, on a blindly obvious level… But wait…!

His eyes shot open, and he gasped. He turned his head quickly to the girls and shouted, "Keep your voices down and don't move!!"

Myra and Eve froze, although Eve had started to laugh with Myra—noticed by the smile she had on her face. She made a false sounding fart, to which she and Myra giggled. Marcum held a finger up to the front of his nose, and lowered his eyebrows at the two, indicating a respect for silence. The two quieted down, while the hunter quietly listened to the air around them.

"Yas hid fvis njam kaqvi…" he uttered quietly. His ears turned in direction of where the noise was supposedly coming from, and remained still. Eve couldn't hear the noise—she didn't know what was going on at all. Why was he freaking out at her like that? Was he just being a brat like he was naturally good at being?

She noticed him extend his arm out slowly, pointing off at something in the woods beyond view. It was sort of… spider-shaped, with eight strong and hairy legs, as well as a face rather than a head which protruded slightly out from the torso, yet on its face it had actual jaws and teeth like a lion or a wolf… Its body was a bit large—it looked to be roughly the size of a small car, give or take a foot or two. Its eyes appeared vacant, while its nose appeared to be nothing more than two slits on the front of its face… Its back end seemed plainly nonexistent, much unlike the spider which had an opisthosoma on its back end… More or less, it looked like something from a bad B-movie from the 80's, but she knew she had to keep quiet on this. Just because it looked like something from the 80's didn't necessarily mean it wasn't dangerous…

"Marcum…!" she whispered, "What do they do?"

"They sit and wait for their prey to make a move… Then, they rush in and grab them using their huge jaws and crush them under their weight and pressure of the jaw's muscles…!" He explained.

"Wow—sounds like just about everything else that walks on four… plus… legs and has sharp jaws like that…" Eve mocked sarcastically.

"Be careful… It's already seen us… It's waiting to make a move…"  
Eve jumped, "What!! You mean that thing's out for us!?"

"They jump! Now shut up!!" Marcum yelled back at her.

"I don't believe this…!" Eve said, backing away from Marcum.

"Well, better start believing, because stuff like this happens everyday…" Marcum said, keeping both eyes and ears forward.

"_Guess I'd better keep quiet, then…" _Eve said quietly to herself, watching the seemingly eventless situation. She didn't know Marcum all that well, aside from the fact he had saved her life, and she really respected him for that… Let alone that he was joining her and Myra, just to help her find some sort of civilization around here where she would feel most comfortable…

The beast gave a low, growling noise, sounding somewhere between a lion and an insect. …What was with all of these insects, anyways? Why were they flying and crawling all over the place? Wasn't Limbo meant to be just this random hole in the ground where lost souls ended up…? Now, there's all these crazy bugs and… flying… insect creatures with effing HUGE teeth, sharp claws, dead-looking eyes and… It just seemed like something out of a HORROR movie to her. Where were they coming from…?

The monster began moving, slowly advancing towards the group in a sickeningly slow spider-like manner. Seeing the way it moved, and how it clacked its teeth together, Eve tried to resist a scream—she hated spiders. She HATED them… She tried to hold back a scream while she bit her tongue, seeing how terrifying the monster really looked. It opened its mouth, to which its face split in four different directions to reveal a complex circular mouth system, and rows upon rows of teeth… Eve screamed…

"DAMN!!" Marcum shouted as the beast responded to her call, accelerating its mobility on eight legs and rapidly approaching fast. He turned the girls around and pushed them with his hand, shouting, "Go! Get away—I'll deal with him!"

"But he's so much bigger than you!!" Eve shouted.

"It didn't stop him before against the big Megamantodea, did it?" Myra said as she pulled Eve by her arm. She noticed the large tear ripping through the sewn place around her bust area and groaned. She blew a sigh and added, "You really need to get some new clothes, unless you want to go around showing yourself off all day."

"YOU try wearing this around, wherever you go…!" Eve argued as the two girls ran.

Marcum held his ground, extending his spear and preparing for a round of melee combat. What happened because of the girls didn't matter to him—it was what was going to happen as a result of this battle…! He had to protect them from this dangerous creature that meant them harm… He knew what they were capable of… These creatures… would actually devour souls… There was no reviving from a bite mark caused by these monsters…

He growled and held on to his spear tightly, planting his feet into the ground to improve traction. The monster continued to advance forth, having slowed down after seeing the spear. It came to a halt eight feet in front of him, and crouched on its legs. Marcum knew what it was about to do… Marcum KNEW what it was about to do…!!

Quickly, he whirled his spear out in front of him, holding it like a jousting pole and ducked. Not a moment too soon, the creature came crashing at him, impaling itself through the mouth upon the spear. The monster gave a horrible shriek, pulling back from him with the spear still lodged through the roof of its mouth. Using its legs, it attempted to remove the spear, trying to scrape or bite it out of its mouth to free itself. Marcum saw this as an ample opportunity to reach for another weapon. But, what was there about for him to grab…?!

A large rock lay near his feet, which had originally served as the cutting board for both Myra and Eve while they were making their bread. Serving no purpose except as an object in his line of vision, he quickly lifted the larger rock with both hands, holding it over the top of his head and aimed. He wasn't about to give the ant lion-like beast a chance to recover—he'd sooner see it dead than moving. With a shout, he gave the rock a hurl, and sent the rock smashing on top of the creature's head. A large complex eye shattered, and with it splurted a long stream of greenish-red ooze, spraying in all directions as the vessel of the eye became undone. As the release continued to gush from the loose and flabby membrane, the eyes of the ant lion started to glow a bright yellow, and it began to rapidly clack its jaws and teeth together. The spear crushed itself in its jaws, and ruled out the possibility of using it for another strike, leaving Marcum to figure out something else. He backed away, holding his ground in case of a retreat as he scoured the surrounding area for anything else that he could use to defend himself. Realizing the small dagger he carried at his side, he drew his small and practically worthless weapon, and brandished it loudly in front of the monster, yelling at it to show his ferocity. The attack did little to deter the beast, and only moments later did it position itself into a crouch again—the pose he knew all too well. It was about to strike again…!

Lock arms, lock legs, position ready and—

ROLL!!

The beast threw itself in Marcum's direction, only to miss the swift and nimble fighter and continued crashing into what loose amounts of brush and trees were in its path. It gave a scream as it yanked one of its legs out from a blackened section of the earth. Its leg sizzled as an awful reek smoked off from its leg. Marcum blinked before he came upon this realization. Fire! The beast didn't like fire! It would make sense, since very few creatures, even down here in Limbo, could withstand the flames of a fiery doom. With the stoking stick still lying in the fire pit, Marcum made a quick dash, grabbing the still-lit stick, and waved it about. He held the stick close to the hairs on the underside of the creature's body, and quickly backed away as the creature began to scream and roar, attempting to drop its body on the earth to extinguish the flames. Marcum knew that if the creature succeeded, it would not only try to go after him, but it would be much more aggressive and quicker at that. Now was the time for him to finish the job! Holding the stick out once more, he attempted to light the side of the creature, covered in the now-sticky goo excreted from the gaping wound in its eye. The goo, being extremely flammable, didn't take long before it reacted with the hot end of the stick, and started to sizzle. The ant lion screeched, and attempted to attack Marcum with its long pinchers, but to no effect—without sight from one of its primary eyes, it was harder to locate and defend itself against this smaller and more agile foe! It attempted to recoil and shrink back, only to back into a cluster of tree trunks and branches, hindering its backwards movement. It lashed out in another attempt to bite at him, only to get a mouth full of air before its eye socket quickly caught aflame. The creature flailed about in a withered manner as black smoke began to rise from its gaping wound, and moaned while clacking its teeth together. The flames began to rise as the fire sought out to burn the creature's "head" first and foremost before getting the rest of the body. With an impaled mouth, a missing eye, and a burning "head," the creature wasn't guaranteed to live long, but still he held the spear right in place. The thick, black smoke was almost toxic, making it incredibly hard to breathe as it smoked off of his body, rising into the air in an incredibly dense manner. It was quite revolting, and completely awful to have to breathe. Finally exhausted and finding the lack of strength left to survive, the gigantic creature gave an ending screech before collapsing on the ground in a savage heap.

Marcum watched it carefully, his eyes holding over with a glint of the warrior within as he made sure the creature was no longer going to rise up on its feet again. He remained still for a time, where only he and beast remained locked in that grip of death… Sensing nothing, he gave a loose sigh, easing his body up, and withdrew his spear from its clutches, turning himself around to slowly depart from camp. Now he had to find Eve, and Myra… Saturated in the blood of his opponent, he came out victorious from the battle—one among many he had to fight while having been here in this strange and desolate land…

He wiped the blood and sweat from his forehead, his thick callused heels walking over the earth with only the sound of one trekking through the fields. He remained relaxed, now letting the warrior side of him dissipate into the shadowy crevices of his mind to replace itself with his former, mellower state, and listened carefully for their voices. More importantly was it that he follow their footprints, and use them and whatever other trail markers that they left to track them down and return to their company. Not that he needed them, but that it wouldn't be customary to leave them so abruptly without a seeing-off before parting ways… and that wasn't something he wanted to do, either.

There came a gurgling noise behind him…

It rushed up fast!—He spun himself around to—

It screeched… … …

Massively, it towered above him, using four of its eight legs to hold it up as it had prepared to pounce him… Through its heart, a long, thin blade protruded through its carcass… So quick and so adeptly did both things happen; like the icy frost coming to signal summer's bane…

She stood before him, eyes focused on her kill as she stared at it with glaring eyes… Dressed in equally as unusual wear as Eve, this obvious female was –also- a warrior of sorts, such as he… Only she… was different…

"Vespi tchak…!" Marcum swore, "My back was unguarded…! You saved my life…!"

"A cautionary word of advice, traveler…" The female figure warned him, "Never leave your back to your enemy. It is foolish, and but one way to learn the ways of a humiliating defeat… Your friends are yonder in yon field. Tell them 'tis best they reside closer to the forests, lest they should be wanting such encounters again…"

Marcum stood baffled.

"Wh-wait—what? What do you…? Wh-who are you…?"

The individual sheathed her sword back into its sheath, still staring far off into the distance, "A lone traveler, much like yourself… My clan was naught but of myself and my master, and I seek for he who it was that slay'd me in my former life, and ended my daughter's life, as well as that of my husband's… You have no need to know of my name, but my name as a shinobi would be… Midnyte…"

He shivered lightly…

"Find yourself refuge in the next town over… There's a dark storm brewing itself about, and far many more dark figures appearing in these parts… Even the animals fear for their sense of nonexistence in this futile world…

"You know of the one they call Michael…?"

"Y… Yes…" Marcum nodded, listening intently.

She remained quiet for a time, "…There is not much more she can do. She should leave now if it all really matters to her. Take her to the city. Her adventure… is unwinding…!"

With a sudden flash of light, Midnyte disappeared, to leave Marcum blinking in bewilderment… Where had she gone, and to disappear so quickly…? The dust settled before he was able to see his way again, and he sighed, taking his spear with him to turn around and find Eve and Myra again. Suddenly, a small star-shaped bit of metal came whizzing over his shoulder to strike the earth before him. With it, a piece of paper with writing on it of some sort. He looked it over, and blinked.

"_Never leave your back to your enemy"_

***

_xxx_

She stood before the vast openness that spread before her, staring far off at the horizon which seemed to know no end. The endless prairie had come to a hault, and from her position high atop the craggy rocks, she could see them… Swarms of them, as far as the eye could see… In countless directions did they roam, all soul-seeking children of the Akusama created for the single-minded purpose of destruction… In a world where freedom is only a partial extension of your physical body, there comes a limit as to how much you can do in what little time you have… In the case of these monsters, there would be no time left for a mother searching for her daughter, or for the man that brought her this grief… The hair wisped its way across her face, which kept a solemn expression as not to feel the cold… She could hear the planet screaming… and all of its inhabitants about to die…

She glanced downwards, biting her lip only momentarily before grasping her mask. Veiling her mouth, she adjusted her pack on her back, and quietly set forth for Dandarbain.

_xxx_

Marcum did wise to tell Eve that staying within the reach of the forests was a good idea. From that moment on, encounters became much less sparse, although by the look on Marcum's face, it appeared as though these appearances were becoming more and more common. The edge of the forest would provide them with room and an ample opportunity to escape, should any danger arise. Traveling all in a straight line, they took the shinobi's advice, and headed straight for the next town. To Eve, none of this made any real sense—if they knew where the nearest town was, why weren't they going there? …Of course, that's what she thought, until she remembered that it was Myra who was trying to lead her there. Marcum followed along to make sure that neither girl was hurt, and never spoke his piece on the matter until recently after having been asked the quickest way.

Myra had lent Eve her overcoat, as to protect her cleavage from showing, and to help her feel a bit more comfortable having to be around Marcum, let alone any other passersby that they encountered. The world was huge… far larger than anything Eve ever even expected… For a world as small as Earth was said to be, this made Earth seem nothing more than like a dot in the sky, although no ceiling could be seen that would otherwise grant her this vision…

It hurt… She felt like she was going to cry… She wasn't even closer to sixteen years old, and already she had her life taken away from her… Gone away and gone forever. Why the hell did it have to happen to her? Why couldn't it have been that damn Diego Honea kid in her fourth hour World Geography class…? He'd gone out with so many girls, and everyone knew what all he did to them… On top of being an asshole to her in class, he'd… get the other girls to do things with him, and… didn't even care, because he never got caught… His sister stole her sweater—the one that was made by her mother out of chanel—she thought, which cost her mother at least forty bucks when she got it for her for her birthday, and it got her mother really mad, so she called the school, and the school called her parents, and they never got a hold of him, and even when they did they never returned it because they said they didn't have it, and then she told Eve that she gave it away to charity because it was a "more charitable cause than she was," and her brother made fun of her and her friend Katie, and he teased her in class, especially about the cats being dissected in Physiology class, and… She missed her dad… She really did… He was so fun to be around, even though he was always busy most of the time… He was like her next-best friend to her, and he always took her and her real best friend Katie out to get ice cream on hot summer days… He hated being alone… She could remember this one time when she and her mom were out without telling him they were going out to coffee—they came back, and he was sitting reclining in his chair all alone listening to the radio, and he was half-asleep…

It made her want to cry—he said he didn't mind, but she knew he did. He gave her a hug afterwards, and although his body was really warm, it was also kind of moist under his shirt, like how he got when he was really worked up over something… And all the lights were really dim, like in a romance novel or in a movie, and she could smell something warm and delicious in the air at that time, too, and that was only when he and her mom were together while she was in her room or at a friend's house. She couldn't stand it. He hated being left alone—he hated it.

There was that time—it was shortly after her mom died, when he came up and hugged her. She was crying, and he was too, and he told her "At least I still have you." …Well, now he didn't have either of them, and now what? Now what was going to happen? I mean, your wife and teenage girl daughter die, almost at the same time, and your family's now gone, and life just goes kablooie… She hoped that he wouldn't dare commit suicide… but at the same time… but…

"_Oh my fucking gosh…!!"_ She exclaimed to herself. Her best friend Katie…!! Oh fuck—now what…?! Katie—her life-long sister and best friend—she was the person she needed at all the times like this—and fuck!! Now she was left behind, and now she was gone. She—Eve was gone! She couldn't imagine how Katie must have felt... watching the funeral and seeing her die—right there and then… Both she and her mother—Eve and her mother that is, died shortly after one another! Eve's mother was pretty much Katie's self-proclaimed second-mommy. The three of them would go out and do so much stuff together—and she and Katie would beg Eve's mom to buy them something when they would go to the mall until she would, and all this other crazy shit… It was driving her mad that her best friend was now left behind, and now it was _she_ who couldn't say goodbye for the last time…

...And now would be the time all the madness would begin…!

_xxx_

"_Mother… …"_

_The rain that did fall down…_

_Hissing…_

_streaming…_

_--and her shivering…_

_She's already dead…_

"_Why did you have to die…?"_

_And him… … … …_

"_Miss, I'm afraid you're going to have to leave now... now… now… now… now… now… now…"_

_He's asked me to leave…_

"…_up the site, and an officer will escort you home."_

_I…I can't…_

_And yet… there she goes…_

_...Just the way she had always planned it..._

"_Miss…?"_

_A peaceful way to die... by a river, in the sand..._

"_Miss? Could you please look at me for a moment...?"_

_She… she's died!—Dead!_

"_Mother…"_

_NOOOO…!!!_

"_Miss… mother… E.R room… Tyscan… Hospital… autopsy to determine the possible… death..."_

"_If only I knew how to say goodbye..."_

_If only I knew how to say goodbye..._

_If only I knew how to say goodbye..._

"_Miss…"_

_Dad… Oh no—he's here…! But, mom—…_

_Mom…_

_is… … …_

"_Oh, Eve… Oh, my dear daughter Eve…!"_

_but… it's… _

"_Mother…"_

…

…

… … …

… …

… … …

…

_._

…

_.._

………

_And… n-now it's—!?_

_AAAAAAH!!!_

_Static-minded, if and only when you can _

_HEAR_

_him talking to you… when around you is an empty shadow_

_LIKE A PHANTOM_

_drifting and seeking for his next prey… which is really quite interesting, because if we look here at the—_

_SAVE YOU_

…—_ophila, you can see that_

_THERE'S No waY!_

_AAAAAH_

_finger clash and wait what his hand it moves stop. A beach and sun—_

_SET_

_with a cute little thingie of sparklies inside! Isn't this just delightful?_

_QUIT LOOKIn aT_

_The store… wood not appealing, odd smElL_

_blood rush_

_DAMN!!_

_All alone on a hill… a hanging corpse rots with an open minded head… The crows would peck and eat, and devour the tastelessness of his own, damn, fucking, savage being…_

"_help me…"_

_child._

_Voice…_

_It's up on the branches… hanging from a leash… is it somebody's dog? but it's a child…wait…_

_Blood!?_

_YOU'LL DIE!! YOU'LL DIE!!_

_Killing that damn fuckin' cockroach!_

—"_But it's a water beetle…!"_

_and it's crunch and its squirm and its eyes glaze over in death and its writhe and it bites the wood that crushes it…_

_That looks like a pebble… but it's a piece of gum on the ground—not a tiny rock in the short April grasses…_

_Recess is over… …_

_Cold…_

_wet… and rainy…_

_I wonder if there will be any homework tonight…?_

"_Eve…?"_

…_if there wasn't such a—_

"_Eve…"_

—_pain in the ass…_

_It's like mom's waking me up…_

"_Eve. Get up!"_

_Round circle glasses black hair blue eyes oh wait it's that girl from Wales…_

"_Miss Eve! Your attention! Please!"_

_What…?_

_xxx_

"Eve, we're nearly there… It best we move, so me thinks…"

How… what…?

She blinked, still feeling quite… what… the word was…?

Dazed… She was still feeling like that, although she came to realize she was awake now. Waking up in Limbo was a lot like waking up in the real world, since her body hadn't quite gotten used to it yet.

She gave a groan, stretching and pulling the skin at the corners of her eyes, removing the tiny crusty sleep things out of her eyes that collected there, and sat before her. If it were any worse, she would have said she had a hangover and was getting over it. Then again, when you're dead, anything feels like a hangover if you think about it… It's just like dying, and then waking up again… Well, maybe not like that—she went through all of that already, and it pretty much freaked her out. Freaked her out…!? Fuckin' had her soul ripped from her body, and that demon Hortus left her body a bleeding mess back in the real world! Talk about making an exit—that was the worst exit EVER!

She took a deep breath, because her body needed it. Myra giggled, helping her to her feet as she prepared to make the walk with the two of them. "Still waking up, I see…! Best you do it and move along—we're approaching Dandarbain quite soon—it is already upon the horizon!"

"Dan… dar… what…?"

"The city of Dandarbain." Marcum repeated nonchalantly, yet with a note of stoicism. "It's the city where beings in the area gather together, for peaceful meanings…"

"…Like trade and commerce!" Myra smiled, nodding vigorously.

Eve frowned, and scratched her head. It all wasn't making much of sense to her at all… "Wait… so, there's like… … a city, where all these people gather, and trade, and… deal with commerce… Isn't that what a city is…?"

"Auds fledjik vjan." Marcum replied immediately. Eve looked downright confused.

She rubbed her eyes again, turning her attention away from him as she walked along, and gave a groan, "Ohhhh… Please don't mind me saying this, but don't tell me that kind of crap the first thing in the morning… or… whenever the hell I wake up…"

Myra giggled, "It appears Miss Eve has no clue as to what time it is…! My dear, you've been sleeping half the day entirely! Best time for waking now, it is…"

Eve snorted, "So what—you're some kind of Yoda now?"

"Wh-what…? Y-yoda…?" Myra blinked.

Marcum chuckled, leaning on the midsection of his spear, finding the matter at all very humorous. Myra blinked, turning her attention to him, and asked, "Mind me asking you what humors you, Master Marcum?"

Marcum shook his head, "No, no—it's all good… You're alright, Myra…"

Myra looked a bit miffed, and sniffed as she turned herself away from the two, "Hmph…! And all I wanted to know was what a Yoda was…!"

"It's a little green man from a galaxy far, far away, hahaha!" Eve broke into laughter, rejoicing in her ability to use such a phrase in a timely manner. Little green men from far far away… Like anyone would know what that was, unless they died like, five seconds ago…! She guessed that was what made coming from her timeframe all the more enjoyable… except that it probably would have been even more humorous had Myra or Marcum known what she was talking about. Oh well…!

Breaking the otherwise happy and pleasant conversation, Marcum added, "I had been carrying you all morning, and stopped to get a bit of rest before pressing onwards. You're very light, considering the weight of that clothing you wear…"

Eve blushed, feeling her cheeks warm up at his compliment. She hid behind her hair bashfully and shook her head with a laugh, "No I'm not…! I'm freakin' fat as a hippo on the Atkin's diet…!"

"Well, I don't think so…" Marcum replied softly.

Eve scoffed, "I'm frickin' a hundred and five pounds! I'm a monster compared to other girls my age…!"

"A little meat on your bones never hurt for a long hard day's work." Myra smiled before adjusting the jacket she let Eve wear.

"Thanks…" Eve muttered, not bothering to see what it was she was doing.

Myra hummed, and smiled, "I dare say, me thinks you're looking better in me coat than I could or ever would…! Do you think that you would like to keep it?"

Eve blinked, "What…? Um, what are you saying Myra…?"

"What I mean is what I said! The jacket looks good on you, and it may be yours if you would like to keep it." Myra smiled.

"Well, thanks…" Eve blushed, not really sure how happy or nervous to feel about wearing a sixty or so year old uniform as her coat on this perilous trip just to get to one city. It seemed like it was taking forever to get there…

"Marcum…?" She asked.

"Yes…?" Came his stoic reply.

"About how long'll it be until we get to this… Dandruff's Bane or whatever you called it?"

"Dandarbain." He corrected her, "In about six minutes."

"Six minutes…!" Eve's eyes widened. She hadn't even realized that they were that close already. What confused her a little was that moments earlier they had mentioned it was already on the horizon. …Perhaps they were talking about the more heavily populated and business oriented portion of the city, since now they were already passing by a few houses along the way.

The architecture of Dandarbain was indeed a bit of a confusing one. Where the past and the present meet, Dandarbain was a mixture of both modern and ancient living structures, resembling places she had once seen in her history and geology books. Some buildings didn't even look one bit like how they did back home, and carried an Escher-esque appearance to them, confusing her even further. By now, the road itself was becoming a bit more travelled on, and seemed a bit more worn, used to the feet of those who would trod upon it. There wasn't any blacktop, as far as she could see, but travelers would still use horses, or some ride on the backs of other animals. There didn't appear to be any cars here—at least, none of which she had seen. Perhaps there wasn't a discovery of oil or gasoline here in Limbo… Maybe that was why… Then again, she suspected there probably weren't any computers here either. So much for MySpace!

Eve blinked as she looked about, and remarked, "Looks kinda weird~… like something I saw when I watched Labyrinth…"

"Labyr… what…?" Myra looked at her unsurely.

"Nevermind—it's an old movie from the 80's about some girl going off to save her baby brother. David Bowie's in it."

"David Bowie…? Oh! This must be from that "television" you keep telling me about…!" Myra giggled.

"NO…!" Eve gasped, staring at her sarcastically. Myra looked quite surprised.

"My, my Miss Eve—a little sarcastic today aren't we…?"

"I always thought she was down-right serious, if you ask me…" Marcum made a snide remark. Eve smirked and gave him a light shove. Myra giggled and watched as Marcum took the shove, and smiled a cheeky grin as Eve swore.

"Y'fucker…!"

"Don't look at me—she's the one laughing at it…!"

"And YOU'RE the one who's laughing at it too! So I'd just say shut up and take it like a man!"

Myra chortled in delight, "Ohohohohoho! Miss Eve's gotten quite a bit rascally, hasn't she?!"

"Bit of a naughty one, at that…" Marcum added.

Eve grumbled, but didn't give it too much attention. It wasn't like it really mattered, anyhow… Just then—she caught something out of the corner of her eye. Off in the distance, a bright, neon-blue beam of light touched down from the sky—appearing to be landing off somewhere in the center of the city…

She blinked… What was that all about…?

"H… Hey, Marcum? What was that blue beam of light I just saw…?" Eve asked.

Marcum shrugged, "It's… some messenger or something like that… They come from the sky periodically to search for Lost Souls, in hopes of bringing them to some land of Eternal Salvation or whatever…"

"It's, in a sense, the Lord Our God sending down his angel, St. Michael, to bring souls up to the Gates of Heaven, so that they may be judged for their sins!" Myra smiled, and nodded. "It happens all the time, Miss Eve, so there's nothing for you to be worrying about…! Quite the charming spectacle, really~!"

Eve got to thinking about it… An angel that descended from the sky to land on this imperfect land, taking with it the souls of those who were to be judged up in Heaven… It sounded like a beautiful thought… but, would she herself be able to ascend up to the heavenly light…? She sighed… It sounded beautiful, really… She just wondered if that's where her… mother—…?

She paused—a shiver being sent down her spine… What if…?

"Myra…?"

"Yes, Miss Eve?"

"How does… one even know who's going to be going up there…?"

"Their bodies have a feeling that tells them." Marcum said, as though all-knowing too well about this sort of subject…

"Deep in their hearts is a spiritual feeling that flows, and tells them to come to this place… It's not even any place special, really—it's just a sort of altar where people ascend the steps, meet the messenger half-way, and he carries them up to the sky."

BA-BUMP…

Eve clutched her chest… She felt her heart race…

"…What about those who are going to be going up there? Does anybody else know who's going to be going up there?"

"Oh yes! Quite certainly. Saw me brother go up with me very eyes, I did." Myra explained, "You can only rely on your senses if at all~! Strong beatin' of the heart maybe~, and a quickening of the pace~…! You feel like you're flying when it all does happen…!"

"Mother…" Eve's eyes widened…

"Hm…?" Myra blinked.

Eve started walking…

"M… Miss Eve? I beg your pardon—What was that you said?"

Marcum recognized it… He froze, feeling his blood run cold…

She kept on walking…

"Miss Eee… ve?" Myra felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Marcum… He only stared ahead at Eve. Myra remained a bit confused, glancing at her, then to him, then to her, then to…

"Oh dear God…" She frowned…

The streets were quite unfamiliar for her… Yet, the road she felt herself walking upon was nearly the same as any other road before her… The gravel crunched beneath her sneakers as she continued to walk along, walking a little faster now…

It had to be…

She felt her heart race again—a sudden heart beat causing her to take a gasp of air. The adrenaline began to pump, and she found herself breathing a little bit heavier…

_Mother…_

She quickened her pace, moving along to a swifter trot now—passing by the unfamiliar structures of this begotten town of Mankind, moving along the passers by who appeared to be heading in the same direction…

_I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you…_

She gasped, feeling her tears beginning to form in her eyes… It wasn't getting any better, and only much... much worse…

Her pace quickened…

Xxx

She stepped up to the platform before her…

He held out his hand to her—a man with the most gentle face, soft skin, and beautiful eyes…

"Please, come stand before me…"

She smiled tearfully… For her, this was to be the moment…

Xxx

She rushed as she turned around a corner, her eyes displaying a sense of fear and denial… There wasn't much time left for her now… She had felt it. In her heart, she had felt the coming approach of loss, as one did when they failed a test… Stronger… Worser… Harder…

Xxx

"Jane Dayton… Daughter of Missus Lindale Leonhart… By order of The Holy Father, our One God above us, Father of Abraham and known to all as our world's Creator… Do you accept my invitation to join me, as we seek the Gates of Heaven in the world above us…?"

Xxx

Her tears began to form, and she cried hysterically as she began to press through. She found herself at a dead end, and panicked. Turning her course, she asked a passerby for the way to the beam of light. He pointed her way, and she continued to rush—crying her way through…

Xxx

She smiled as she looked at him, holding his hand as she made her reply…

"Yes…"

A great, enormous blue beam of light emitted from the wing-ed angel, while a huge blue ringed wave came emitting from its center. A crowd of people stood and stared at the awesome phenomenon—only another natural occurrence in this world, along with the many mysteries that surrounded it…

Xxx

She felt the impact as she heard the explosion caused by the blue wave. It was nearly enough to knock anyone off their feet, but was harmless in the end really. She redoubled her efforts, and began to run now.

She ran… her feet feeling the tingling pain as they were pushed harder than any other time in her life… Memories of her mother flooded through her mind—the one person she would have wanted to have seen most…

She could feel it…

She could sense her mother's presence…

Her mother…

…was leaving.

Xxx

Slowly, the angel wrapped his arms around her… Jane held on close to the angel of God, laying her head on his chest as he spread his wings wide… With a flap of his wings, the two slowly felt themselves being lifted up—the bright blue beam of light being that which lifted them from the earthly prison…

Xxx

"_Eve—don't let those bullies at school bother you. Just smile at them, and let it go…"_

"_Beautiful music you're playing on the piano, Eve…! It was your father and I's favorite song growing up…"_

"_Ooooh~, you're just my little special baby~! Yyyyes you are~! Yyyyes you are~!"_

"_Mothers know these things… and only mothers can make it better, dear…"_

"…_But don't ever forget what I told you, Eve…!"_

She panted—the memories and voices in her head echoing from times long since past… She bawled as she ran—her voice screaming as she made her way in view of the altar…

Before her… she could see her…

Her mother…

Was already lifted…

Up…

"…MOTHER!!!!" Eve screamed at the top of her lungs. Her voice carried off the walls, nearly to an eardrum splitting pitch…

She rushed forward, forcing people away from her path as she attempted to make it to the altar…

Jane looked from her position in the angel's arms, down at all the people before her. She could feel her heart skip—being so high up… She couldn't ever really recall a time she had felt so lifted… so free…

Higher up she flew…

Up higher…

And higher…

…and higher…

She glanced down at the world below her, amazed at the tiny dots that became of the people before her… But her eyes also cast themselves upon one particular person… She felt her heart sink…

"_Eve…"_

Eve tripped and fell, struggling to pull herself back up to her feet…

The form of her daughter became smaller, and smaller… Up higher she rose, saddened by the early death her daughter had to take… But she couldn't be unhappy anymore… because she was going up to Heaven to be happy…

"_Always remember…"_

She crawled back to her feet, and staggered up the steps of the altar… She looked up Heavenward, and watched as the blue beam of light began to disappear before her… She panted heavily... sweat dripping from her brow as she looked upwards at the deep blue azure before her, as the white dotted form of a familiar face… now began to disappear from sight…

From the heavens…

A feather… of pure white… drifted by her face, and brushed past her ear…

"…I love you…"

"M-mother…"

She stared at the sky…

fading…

fading…

fading…

until soon, she… she was…

"…Gone…"

She fell to her knees…

Her head hung low…

She wept…


End file.
